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March 31, 2004

Volume 1, Issue 1

The Banker’s Advocate
Text Box: Predecessors pave way to ongoing success Text Box: job of retaining their people.” All the eyes in the room turned to me. I blushed with pride and quickly credited my predecessors. Each of the past bank commissioners contributed significantly to this Department. The cumulative effect of these contributions has made this organization a good place to work and build a career. Marlin Jackson was the first commissioner to recognize a serious technological shortfall in the Department. He brought the Department into the computer age. He also increased staff

I am very pleased to announce the publication of our new quarterly newsletter.  It is my sincerest hope that “The Banker’s Advocate” will be of assistance to you and your staff.  The purpose of this newsletter is to inform you of changes and additions to regulations, make you aware of events at the State Bank Department and keep you abreast of emerging issues in banking.  I hope you will find this publication useful.  I welcome your comments.

I’m sure you have a keen interest in your State Bank Department and would like to know how it is viewed outside the state.  In the short time I

Text Box: have been here, I’ve learned that we have a Department to be proud of. Here’s an illustration. Last month, I attended a meeting of state bank commissioners. A portion of that meeting was devoted to an open discussion of issues that affected us as commissioners. One question addressed was how to retain senior examiners. Several suggestions were made. Then, one of the commissioners from a state in the Midwest offered this, “Just ask Arkansas, they have one of the best Departments in the United States, and they are doing a terrific Text Box: size and developed a team to assist banks under enforcement actions. Bill Ford forged cooperative agreements with the federal regulators, established regional offices, obtained our first accreditation with CSBS (Conference Text Box: See VIEW, Page 3 Text Box: Bunny Adcock Text Box: The Commissioner’s View Text Box: the FDIC. The Federal Reserve Bank previously has implemented a “zero tolerance” policy. As you can see, the federal bank regulatory agencies – and this office – are very serious about compliance in these areas. Banks should review their procedures to ensure there are mechanisms in place for full compliance in areas covered by the BSA. Text Box: All of us in the banking industry are aware of the importance of compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA). Since the terrorist attacks against the United States in 2001, compliance has become ever more critical. Examiners are making extra efforts to emphasize compliance in this area. In recent discussion with the Federal Deposit Insur- Text Box: ance Corporation, our office has been informed that the FDIC has adopted a “zero tolerance” position when examination efforts discover unresolved violations of the BSA that have been noted in prior examinations. If your bank is found to have violations cited as unresolved from previous examinations, the institution will face enforcement actions from Great Seal of the State of ArkansasText Box: A publication of the Arkansas State Bank Department Text Box: Hot Topic: Emphasis on BSA increases By Candace Franks, Deputy Bank Commissioner and Legal Counsel Hot Topic Logo