[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 168 (Thursday, August 29, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45491-45494]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-18606]
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FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM
FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION
Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment
Request
AGENCY: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (``Board'')
and
[[Page 45492]]
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), (collectively, the
``Agencies'').
ACTION: Joint notice, request for comment.
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SUMMARY: The Agencies invite comment on a proposal to extend for three
years, with revision, the Notice by Financial Institutions of
Government Securities Broker or Government Securities Dealer Activities
and the Notice by Financial Institutions of Termination of Activities
as a Government Securities Broker or Government Securities Dealer (Form
G-FIN and Form G-FINW; OMB Nos. 7100-0224 (Board), 3064-0093 (FDIC)).
DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before October 28, 2019.
ADDRESSES: Interested parties are invited to submit written comments to
either or both of the Agencies. All comments, which should refer to the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control numbers, will be shared
between the Agencies. Direct all written comments as follows:
Board: You may submit comments, identified by OMB control no. 7100-
0224 by any of the following methods:
Agency website: http://www.federalreserve.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments at http://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/foia/proposedregs.aspx.
Email: [email protected]. Include the OMB
number in the subject line of the message.
FAX: (202) 452-3819 or (202) 452-3102.
Mail: Ann E. Misback, Secretary, Board of Governors of the
Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and Constitution Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20551.
All public comments are available from the Board's website at
http://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/foia/proposedregs.aspx as submitted,
unless modified for technical reasons or to remove personally
identifiable information at the commenter's request. Accordingly,
comments will not be edited to remove any identifying or contact
information. Public comments may also be viewed electronically or in
paper form in Room 146, 1709 New York Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20006,
between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on weekdays. For security reasons, the
Board requires that visitors make an appointment to inspect comments.
You may do so by calling (202) 452-3684. Upon arrival, visitors will be
required to present valid government-issued photo identification and to
submit to security screening in order to inspect and photocopy
comments.
Additionally, commenters may send a copy of their comments to the
OMB Desk Officer--Shagufta Ahmed--Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office
Building, Room 10235, 725 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503, or by
fax to (202) 395-6974.
FDIC: You may submit comments, which should refer to ``3064-0093''
by any of the following methods:
Agency website: https://www.fdic.gov/regulations/laws/federal/. Follow the instructions for submitting comments on the FDIC's
website.
Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
Email: [email protected]. Include ``3064-0093'' in the
subject line of the message.
Mail: Manuel E. Cabeza, Counsel, Attn: Comments, Room MB-
3128, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, 550 17th Street NW,
Washington, DC 20429.
Hand Delivery: Comments may be hand delivered to the guard
station at the rear of the 550 17th Street Building (located on F
Street) on business days between 7:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.
Public Inspection: All comments received will be posted without
change to https://www.fdic.gov/regulations/laws/federal/ including any
personal information provided. Paper copies of public comments may be
requested from the FDIC Public Information Center by telephone at (877)
275-3342 or (703) 562-2200.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: A copy of the Paperwork Reduction Act
of 1995 (PRA) OMB submission, including the reporting form and
instructions, supporting statement, and other documentation will be
placed into OMB's public docket files, if approved. These documents
will also be made available on the Federal Reserve Board's public
website at http://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/reportforms/review.aspx
or may be requested from the agency clearance officer, whose name
appears below. Requests for additional information or a copy of the
collection may be obtained by contacting:
Board: Federal Reserve Board Clearance Officer--Nuha Elmaghrabi--
Office of the Chief Data Officer, Board of Governors of the Federal
Reserve System, Washington, DC 20551, (202) 452-3829.
FDIC: Manuel E. Cabeza, Counsel, (202) 898-3767, Legal Division,
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, 550 17th Street NW, Washington,
DC 20429.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 15, 1984, the Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) delegated to the Board authority under the Paperwork
Reduction Act (PRA) to approve and assign OMB control numbers to
collections of information conducted or sponsored by the Board. In
exercising this delegated authority, the Board is directed to take
every reasonable step to solicit comment. In determining whether to
approve a collection of information, the Board will consider all
comments received from the public and other agencies.
Request for Comment on Information Collection Proposal
The Agencies invite public comment on the following information
collection. Comments are invited on the following:
a. Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for
the proper performance of the Agencies' functions, including whether
the information has practical utility;
b. The accuracy of the estimate of the burden of the proposed
information collection, including the validity of the methodology and
assumptions used;
c. Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected;
d. Ways to minimize the burden of information collection on
respondents, including through the use of automated collection
techniques or other forms of information technology; and
e. Estimates of capital or startup costs and costs of operation,
maintenance, and purchase of services to provide information.
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be shared
between the Agencies. All comments received, including attachments and
other supporting materials, are part of the public record and will be
included in the submission to OMB. At the end of the comment period,
the comments and recommendations received will be analyzed to determine
the extent to which the Agencies should modify the proposal.
Title: Notice by Financial Institutions of Government Securities
Broker or Government Securities Dealer Activities; Notice by Financial
Institutions of Termination of Activities as a Government Securities
Broker or Government Securities Dealer (Form G-FIN).
OMB Control Numbers: Board: 7100-0224. FDIC: 3064-0093.
General Description of Report: The Securities Exchange Act of 1934,
as amended (the Act),\1\ requires financial institutions to notify
their appropriate regulatory agency (ARA) prior to using
[[Page 45493]]
the mails or any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce to
engage in government securities broker or dealer activities. The Board
is the ARA for state member banks, foreign banks, uninsured state
branches or state agencies of foreign banks, commercial lending
companies owned or controlled by foreign banks, and Edge corporations
(collectively, ``Board-regulated financial institutions''). The FDIC is
the ARA for state nonmember banks and insured branches of foreign banks
(collectively, ``FDIC-regulated financial institutions''). A Board- or
FDIC-regulated financial institution must use Form G-FIN to register as
a government securities broker or dealer or to amend a previously
submitted G-FIN.
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\1\ 15 U.S.C 78o-5.
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Form G-FIN report collects such information as the company name,
all business addresses, names and titles of managers of government
securities activities, and the names of any persons involved in
disciplinary proceedings related to the sale of securities. The Board
uses the information collected by Form G-FIN to measure compliance with
the Act. For the FDIC, the Form G-FIN is used by insured State
nonmember banks that are government securities brokers or dealers to
notify the FDIC of their status.
An important function of the Form G-FIN is to help financial
institutions determine whether they must file notices pursuant to the
Act. The definitions of government securities broker and government
securities dealer in the Act are very broad and, if read literally,
would encompass most banks and many thrift institutions. The Treasury
has the authority to exempt institutions from this requirement if it is
consistent with the intent of the Act. When the Treasury regulations
were first drafted to implement the reporting requirements of the Act,
the appropriate regulatory agencies (ARAs) worked closely to narrow the
class of financial institution required to file the Form G-FIN report
(reflected in Part B of the instructions, Who Must File).
In addition to incorporating the Treasury's exemptions from the
notice requirement in the reporting instructions, these exemptions are
prominently summarized on the cover sheet of the Form G-FIN report in
order to provide a simpler and easier means for financial institutions
to determine if they are exempt.
Respondents: State member banks, insured state nonmember banks,
foreign banks, insured branches of foreign banks, uninsured state
branches or state agencies of foreign banks, commercial lending
companies owned or controlled by foreign banks, and Edge corporations.
Respondent burden:
Board:
Estimated number of respondents: Reporting, 34; Recordkeeping, 2.
Estimated average hours per response: Reporting, 1; Recordkeeping,
0.25.
Estimated frequency: 1.
Estimated total annual burden hours: 35.
FDIC:
Estimated number of respondents: 1.
Estimated average hours per response: 1.
Estimated frequency: 1.
Estimated total annual burden hours: 1.
Title: Notice by Financial Institutions of Termination of
Activities as a Government Securities Broker or Government Securities
Dealer (Form G-FINW).
OMB Control Numbers: Board: 7100-0224. FDIC: 3064-0093.
General Description of Report: The Act requires financial
institution to notify their ARA upon terminating government securities
broker or dealer activities. A Board- or FDIC-regulated financial
institution must use Form G-FINW to notify the Board or FDIC,
respectively, of its termination of such activities. Form G-FINW
collects information such as the company name, address, and contact
person responsible for the records associated with the government
securities broker or dealer activities. The Board and FDIC use the
information collected by Form G-FINW to measure compliance with the
Act. The information collected by Forms G-FINW is not available from
other sources.
The instructions for Form G-FINW state that a notificant should
retain one exact copy of the each completed Form G-FINW for the
notificant's records. These records must be kept until at least three
years after the financial institution has notified the Board or FDIC,
as appropriate, that it has ceased to function as a government
securities broker or dealer.
Respondent: State member banks, insured state nonmember banks,
foreign banks, insured branches of foreign banks, uninsured state
branches or state agencies of foreign banks, commercial lending
companies owned or controlled by foreign banks, and Edge corporations.
Respondent burden:
Board:
Estimated number of respondents: Reporting, 2; Recordkeeping, 1.
Estimated average hours per response: Reporting, 0.25; Recordkeeping,
0.25.
Estimated frequency: 1.
Estimated total annual burden hours: 1.
FDIC:
Estimated number of respondents: 1.
Estimated average hours per response: 0.25.
Estimated frequency: 1.
Estimated total annual burden hours: 0.25.
Proposed Revisions: The Agencies propose to revise Form G-FIN and
Form GINW to (1) require respondents to submit PDF versions of the
forms and any attachments to a designated email address, and (2) to
correct cross-references on the following forms: G-FIN-4, Form MSD-4,
and Form U-4, which are incorporated by reference in Item 7 of the Form
G-FIN.
In addition, the Board proposes to revise the Form G-FIN and Form
G-FINW collections to account for a requirement in the Form G-FIN
forms' instructions that respondents retain a signed copy of the form
and data submitted. Currently, only respondents that are state member
banks or uninsured state branches or state agencies of a foreign bank
must comply with this recordkeeping requirement, which is imposed on
such respondents by regulations promulgated by the U.S. Department of
the Treasury (``Treasury'').\2\ Pursuant to those regulations, such
respondents must retain Forms G-FIN and G-FINW until at least three
years after the financial institution has notified the Board that it
has ceased to function as a government securities broker or dealer. The
Board proposes to revise the Form G-FIN and Form G-FINW information
collections to impose identical recordkeeping requirements on
respondents that are foreign banks, commercial lending companies owned
or controlled by foreign banks, and Edge corporations. The retention
period with respect to forms filed by those respondents would be
identical to the period imposed by the Treasury Department regulations
in order to maintain parity among respondent institutions. The proposal
also would revise the instructions to Forms G-FIN and G-FINW so that
they state the required retention period for these forms.
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\2\ See 17 CFR 404.4.
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For the FDIC, the Form G-FIN4 and Form G-FIN5 are also information
collections cleared under the OMB control number 3064-0093. Form G-FIN-
4 is used by associated persons of insured state nonmember banks that
are government securities brokers or dealers to provide certain
information to the bank and to the FDIC concerning employment,
residence, and statutory disqualification. Form G-FIN-5 is used
[[Page 45494]]
by insured state nonmember banks that are government securities brokers
or dealers to notify the FDIC that an associated person is no longer
associated with the government securities broker or dealer function of
the bank. These revisions incur no change in the method or substance of
any information collections under OMB control number 3064-0093 and
there is no subsequent change in burden.
Legal authorization and confidentiality: Forms G-FIN and G-FINW are
authorized under 15 U.S.C. 78o-5(a)(l)(B)(i), which requires a
financial institution that is a broker or dealer of government
securities to submit a written notice advising its appropriate
regulatory agency (ARA) that it is a government securities broker or a
government securities dealer or that it has ceased to act as such. The
Act also directs the Board, in consultation with the other ARAs (the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Office of the Comptroller
of the Currency),\3\ as well as the Securities and Exchange Commission
(SEC), to prescribe the form of and the information collected in these
notices (15 U.S.C. 78o-5(a)(l)(B)(ii)). Further support for the
creation and collection of these notices by the Board is found in the
Treasury regulations, authorized by 15 U.S.C. 78o-5(b)(l), which
instruct that the Form G-FIN and Form G-FINW are promulgated by the
Board and that such forms are to be used by non-exempt \4\ financial
institutions to notify the ARA of their status as government securities
brokers or dealers or the termination of such status.\5\
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\3\ A copy of the form filed with each ARA is also made
available by the ARA to the SEC under the Act (15 U.S.C. 78o-
5(a)(1)(B)(iii)).
\4\ The Act permits the Secretary of the Treasury to exempt
certain government securities brokers or dealers, 15 U.S.C. 78o-
5(a)(5), and the Secretary of the Treasury has promulgated
regulations exempting certain types of firms. See 17 CFR part 401.
\5\ See 17 CFR 400.1(d), 449.1, and 449.2; see also 17 CFR
400.5(b); requiring that any amendments or corrections to the notice
of status of government securities broker or dealer be filed by the
financial institution on Form G-FIN within 30 days).
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Section 15C of the Act, 15 U.S.C. 78o-5(b)(1)(C), also instructs
the Secretary of the Treasury to promulgate recordkeeping requirements
regarding the forms and records to be retained by government securities
brokers and dealers and to specify the time period for which such
records shall be preserved. Accordingly, the recordkeeping requirement
associated with these forms is contained in 17 CFR 404.4, which
requires state member banks and uninsured state branches or state
agencies of foreign banks, as well as other institutions, to retain
these forms for three years after the financial institution notifies
its ARA that it has ceased to function as a government securities
broker or dealer. Although Treasury's recordkeeping requirement does
not explicitly apply to foreign banks, to Edge corporations, or to
commercial lending companies that are owned or controlled by foreign
banks, the Board has the authority to ``issue such rules and
regulations with respect to transactions in government securities as
may be necessary to prevent fraudulent and manipulative acts and
practices and to promote just and equitable principles of trade.'' 15
U.S.C. 78o-5(b)(3)(A). Imposing a recordkeeping requirement on foreign
banks, Edge corporations, and commercial lending companies owned or
controlled by foreign banks is necessary for the public interest and
protection of investors in order to ensure that the proper notification
has been provided when these institutions are transacting in government
securities (15 U.S.C. 78o-5(a)(1)(B)). In addition, the Board is
authorized to impose a recordkeeping requirement on foreign banking
organizations \6\ (12 U.S.C. 3108), on Edge corporations (12 U.S.C.
625), and on commercial lending companies that are owned or controlled
by foreign banks (12 U.S.C. 3106, as applied through 12 U.S.C.
1844(c)).
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\6\ A foreign banking organization is a foreign bank that
operates a branch, agency, or commercial lending company subsidiary
in the United States; controls a bank in the United States; or
controls an Edge corporation acquired after March 5, 1987; and any
company of which the foreign bank is a subsidiary.
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The obligation to file the Form G-FIN and Form G-FINW with the
Board, and the obligation for the government securities broker or
dealer to retain a copy of the Form G-FIN and Form G-FINW, is mandatory
for those financial institutions for which the Board serves as the ARA,
unless the financial institution is exempt from the reporting
requirement under Treasury's regulations. The filing of these forms and
the records retention period is event-generated.
Under the Act, each ARA is instructed to make these forms available
to the SEC, and the SEC is instructed to make the notices available to
the public (15 U.S.C. 78o-5(a)(l)(B)(iii)). Thus, the information
collected on Form G-FIN and Form G-FINW is ordinarily not treated as
confidential.\7\ However, given that Item 6 of Form G-FIN instructs the
filer to attach copies of the confidential Form G-FIN-4, or if
applicable, to attach copies of any previously filed confidential Form
MSD-4 or confidential Form U-4, these attachments will be treated as
confidential under exemptions 4 and/or 6 of the FOIA.
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\7\ The Board's Regulation H provides that any person filing any
statement, report, or document under the Act may submit written
objection to the public disclosure of the information when such
information is filed in accordance with the procedures provided in
12 CFR 208.36(d). In addition, if a respondent believes that
disclosing the information on these forms is reasonably likely to
result in substantial harm to its competitive position, then
consistent with exemption 4 of the Freedom of Information Act
(``FOIA''), the respondent may request confidential treatment for
such information pursuant to the Board's Rules Regarding the
Availability of Information, 12 CFR 261.15.
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Consultation outside the agency: The Board consulted with the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Office of the Comptroller of
Currency, and the Securities Exchange Commission in reviewing the form
and instructions for this submission.
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System on August 15,
2019.
Yao-Chin Chao,
Assistant Secretary of the Board.
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
Dated at Washington, DC, on August 14, 2019.
Valerie J. Best
Assistant Executive Secretary.
[FR Doc. 2019-18606 Filed 8-28-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6210-01-P 6714-01-P