WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve Tuesday issued a rule that will allow more banks to benefit from certain capital and reporting exemptions available to smaller holding companies.
The new rule will raise the asset threshold for firms eligible for the Small Bank Holding Company and Savings and Loan Holding Company Policy Statement from $1 billion to $3 billion. The new threshold was required by the Senate's recent regulatory relief law, which became law in May.
The Fed issued a so-called interim final rule, which becomes effective immediately rather than after a traditional notice-and-comment period. The Fed nonetheless said it would accept comment on the change for 60 days following publication in the Federal Register.
The new law included a provision to raise the applicability threshold of the Fed’s small bank holding company policy — which exempts small banks from certain capital and reporting requirements. The Fed said it was making no additional changes to the rule except conforming changes to other rules.
The Fed most recently amended its small bank holding company policy in 2015, when it raised the threshold from $500 billion to $1 billion.
