In its response yesterday to the regulatory initiative in support of banking innovation, ABA welcomed the promised cooperation of the OCC as banks strive to enhance service to their customers and streamline innovation.
“Banks have always been involved in innovation,” said ABA EVP Wayne Abernathy. “That‘s how we stay relevant to our customers and their changing needs and interests. The OCC’s white paper sends a clear message that OCC wants to be on the ‘helps’ side.”
In light of the growing importance to banks of financial industry technology — “fintech” — ABA commended the OCC for taking a wider view of innovation that can include collaborative efforts from regulators regarding responsible bank innovation.
ABA noted that the white paper correctly focuses on how banks deploy new products and services — whether with old, current or new technology — to accomplish a traditional objective: meeting constantly evolving customer needs for financial services. ABA also stressed that successful principles for innovation in technology must be part of overall regulatory supervision.
