OCC And FDIC Finalize Rules To Refocus Bank Supervision On Material Financial Risks

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) on August 27, 2026, finalized a rule that establishes new standards for determining when a bank has engaged in an “unsafe or unsound practice” and when examiners may issue a Matter Requiring Attention (MRA) (for the FDIC, MRAs will now replace the former MRBAs, Matters Requiring Board Attention). The rule is intended to refocus supervision on material financial risks and away from less consequential concerns involving policies, procedures, documentation, reputation risk and other nonfinancial matters.

The rule is significant because the term “unsafe or unsound practice” has long been used by the agencies without a regulatory definition. Section 8 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, 12 U.S.C. § 1818, authorizes various enforcement actions based on such practices, but the statute itself does not define the term.