Pub 1 2020 Issue 4

With virtually every part of the U.S. economy facing unexpected financial challenges from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Congress has passed the largest relief package in U.S. history. Signed into law on March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act is designed to assist the millions of Americans affected by the outbreak. The legislation has multiple provisions that affect retirement and health savings arrangements.

Through the lens of the COVID-19 pandemic, federal and state regulators on June 23 jointly issued guidance that outlines supervisory principles for financial-institution examiners.

Remember that childhood game follow-the-leader where one person directed, and the others walked in line? Well, it was not a favorite of mine, and I could never quite pinpoint why.

As the financial industry navigates the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, one thing is clear: digital banking has never been more important to financial institutions and their customers.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Federal Reserve Board (FRB), and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued a “Joint Statement on CRA Consideration for Activities in Response to COVID-19” on March 9, 2020. The agencies state that they recognize the potential for the coronavirus disease, COVID-19, to adversely affect the customers and operations of financial institutions.

In my senior year in college, I took a business law class that doled out a daunting assignment: Put a stake in the ground and say where you’re going to be at age 35 and how you’re going to get there. At that time, I was pretty unsure how my career would unfold, but I guess instinct kicked in, and I wrote about becoming president and CEO — and possibly chairman — of our family bank. Well, I wasn’t chairman at 35, but I was president and CEO, which speaks directly to what planning, drive and determination can do.