Wednesday, March 12, 2025
We make bankers better!

Week of March 3

March 4, 2025

In This Issue…

From Adrian’s desk …

By Adrian Beverage
OBA President & CEO

Just some random tidbits that might be of interest to our bankers this week!

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I guess we had our first bout of severe weather last night for this “spring” season … even though it’s not technically spring yet. Although, Jeremy – who loves to talk about being a meteorology major in college for his first year or so – here in the office will argue endlessly on something about “meteorological spring” that starts on March 1 – I try not to pay attention to him when he goes off on tangents.

Anyway, I did hear about some storm damage down in Allen in southeastern Oklahoma, and we talked to Debbie Ward, president and CEO of Farmers State Bank down there. She said there were luckily no injuries and, while there is some definite damage to some buildings in the downtown area, the bank emerged unscathed.

Here’s to praying everyone, everywhere, stays safe this storm season.

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I read a group of Republican lawmakers urged the Treasury secretary to hurriedly fill the seat for vice chair of supervision on the Federal Reserve board, specifically with someone who will unwind “the politicized regulations promulgated by the board during the Biden administration.”

For all of that, I absolutely agree.

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It seems the wheels are completely off the wagon for Nebraska men’s basketball. The ‘Huskers lost both games last week, both at home. It marked their fourth loss in five games and really puts them on the outside looking in for a chance at a NCAA Tournament berth.

When’s football season start?

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FinCEN halts fines on BOI reporting failure; plans updated deadlines, reporting requirements

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network last week said it will not issue fines or penalties against companies that fail to report their beneficial ownership information by the current deadline.

Instead, it plans to issue an interim rule with a new deadline and later revise the reporting requirements to ease the burden on businesses.

BOI collection had been on hold until recently because of preliminary injunctions against enforcement issued in two lawsuits challenging the Bank Secrecy Act. The courts have since lifted both injunctions, allowing collection to resume. FinCEN had set a March 21 reporting deadline for affected businesses, but in a statement, the agency said it now plans to issue an interim rule by that date to extend the deadline.

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FDIC signage compliance deadline pushed back to 2026

The FDIC board on Monday pushed back by more than a year the compliance date for certain provisions of the agency’s revised rule on the use of its name and logo by financial institutions, saying it will use the time to consider adjustments to the regulation.

The FDIC last year adopted new requirements, originally setting a compliance deadline of Jan. 1. The deadline was later was pushed back to May 1, although the American Bankers Association was among the groups that urged the FDIC to push back the compliance date to 2026 to provide institutions with sufficient time to implement the rule. The change announced today does just that, setting a new compliance deadline of March 1, 2026.

The most recent delay applies to requirements regarding the display of the FDIC’s official sign on digital channels as well as automated teller machines and similar devices. The remaining provisions in the rule will still take effect on May 1 of this year, according to the FDIC. The agency said it will use the additional time to consider changes to the rule.

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Oklahoma banker elected as Friends of Traditional Banking chair

Amada Alvidrez, regional retail sales manager at Equity Bank, in Guymon, has been elected as chair for the Friends of Traditional Banking for the 2025-2026 cycle.

Alvidrez has been a member of FOTB’s executive committee since 2021. She recently served as the OBA chair from 2022-2023.

FOTB is a non-partisan grassroots effort, organized by community bankers bankers. It regularly chooses two congressional races each election cycle, and encourages itsmembership to donate directly to those campaigns.

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OBA Bankers’ Night Out programs ready for spring

The dates for the OBA Bankers’ Night Out programs have been finalized. Mark your calendar for the date of the program that’s in your area of the state and plan to attend. Bring your coworkers with you so that everyone can be up to speed on the most recent developments affecting their job. In addition to state and federal legislative updates, the program will include a discussion on the recent developments in your industry.

As in the past, the schedule for each of these meetings is:

5:30 p.m. – Drinks
6:15 p.m. – Program
7 p.m. – Dinner

PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED. The cost is $60 per person. Click here for a registration form.

Locations and dates for this year’s events are:

Additionally, a special lunch edition of the Bankers Night Out events will be held on April 30 at Shangri-La, in Afton. It will start at 11:30 a.m. and the cost is $50 per person.

Please contact Thi Pham (thi@oba.com) for sponsorship questions.

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OBA education corner …

One of our favorite all-time actors, Gene Hackman, died last week. There wasn’t a single movie that wasn’t made better with his presence. Of course, everyone knows his Oscar-winning roles in The French Connection and Unforgiven, but don’t sleep on lesser-known gems like Uncommon Valor, Bite The Bullet and The Quick and the Dead. His parting was well made. While remembering all the great roles he had in the movies, don’t forget to take part in some upcoming continuing education opportunities for you and your staff in 2025!

  • 2025 Retail Management Workshop, March 11-12, Oklahoma City — This two-day, interactive, workshop is designed to provide a complete overview of management and leadership principles for retail managers serving in all roles of the retail banking line of business for the bank.
  • Avoiding Check Fraud Liability: From Prevention to Loss Allocation, March 12, webinar — This webinar provides attendees with tips to avoid check fraud losses, as well as an overview of the laws that apply to loss allocation when check fraud occurs.
  • IRA Beneficiary Payout Options: The New Rules and When They Take Effect, March 13, webinar — The proposed regulations released in February 2022 tried to clarify the original intention of the SECURE Act of 2020. After waiting in limbo for over two years, in July 2024 the IRS released the final regulations that take effect beginning in 2025.
  • Fraudulent Cashier’s Checks: Best Practices for Avoiding Losses, March 19, webinar — Learn about the unique risk cashier’s checks pose to financial institutions and the best practices for limiting losses when processing these transactions.
  • Mortgage Origination Compliance – 2-Part Series, March 19 & 26, webinar — How can you keep all the requirements straight in your head so you can be sure to not miss anything? In this two-part webinar, we’ll discuss all the relevant requirements and considerations in the origination process.
  • 2025 Bank Director Symposium, March 25, Oklahoma City — The objective of this symposium is to provide updates on topics including regulatory expectations, vendor management, succession planning, talent acquisition, ALCO and other critical areas for a bank’s success.
  • Opening Business Accounts, March 26-Oklahoma City; March 27-Enid — In this evening seminar, participants gain confidence and a clear understanding of the regulatory, compliance, documentation and state law requirements for opening business accounts.
  • 2025 OBA Senior Management Forum, April 6-8, Indian Wells, California — One of the key benefits in the conference will be talking with your peers. Attendees at the OBA 2024 Senior Management Conference will be surrounded by those with similar titles, similar workloads, similar problems and likely solutions to issues that can be just as similar. If you have any questions or want to get signed up, contact the OBA’s education department at 405-424-5252.

Also, the OBA is proud to promote the recognition of bankers who have devoted 50 or more years of service to the banking industry. All eligible nominees will be honored at the 2022 OBA Convention on May 14 at the Skirvin-Hilton in Oklahoma City. Click here to download a nomination form. If you have any questions, please contact Janis Reeser at 405-424-5252 or janis@oba.com.

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