The Federal Reserve proposed codifying the removal of reputation risk from its bank supervision framework, the OCC granted a new national bank charter to PAYO Digital Bank, the CFTC Chairman announced senior staff appointments, and 33 FOCUS reports tied the monthly record across 57 total events.
Federal Reserve Proposes Removing Reputation Risk From Supervision
The Federal Reserve Board requested public comment on a proposal to codify the removal of "reputation risk" from its supervision of banks — a significant policy shift that follows earlier informal actions to deprioritize this factor in examinations. Reputation risk has been one of the most controversial elements of bank supervision, with critics arguing that it has been used to pressure banks into de-banking lawful businesses — including cryptocurrency firms, money service businesses, and politically disfavored industries.
The formalization of this change would affect how every bank, bank holding company, and their broker-dealer and advisory subsidiaries are examined. For the financial services industry tracked on the Finleet Terminal, the removal of reputation risk from the supervisory framework could encourage banks to expand services to sectors they had previously avoided, including digital asset firms and non-traditional financial companies. The comment period will give industry participants the opportunity to shape the final rule.
OCC Grants New National Bank Charter to PAYO Digital Bank
The OCC granted a new national bank charter to PAYO Digital Bank, NA — one of the rarest and most consequential regulatory events in banking. New national bank charters are exceptionally uncommon; the OCC typically grants fewer than a handful per year. A digital bank charter signals that PAYO has met the OCC's capital, management, and business plan requirements for a federally chartered banking institution.
The charter grants PAYO the ability to accept deposits, make loans, and conduct banking activities under federal regulation — without the state-level patchwork of money transmitter licenses that non-bank fintechs must navigate. For the broader fintech industry, each new digital bank charter validates the OCC's willingness to extend national bank status to technology-driven financial institutions.
CFTC Chairman Selig Announces Senior Staff
CFTC Chairman Selig announced senior staff appointments — a personnel event that shapes the Commission's enforcement priorities, market structure policies, and digital asset regulatory approach. Senior staff appointments at the CFTC typically include the General Counsel, Director of Enforcement, Director of the Division of Market Oversight, and other key division heads. The composition of the Chairman's leadership team signals the regulatory direction of the Commission.
JPMorgan Chase Non-Bank Affiliate Merger
JPMorgan Chase Bank, NA filed a Section 215a-3 merger with a non-bank affiliate — a corporate reorganization tool that allows national banks to merge with affiliated entities that are not banks. These mergers are used to consolidate operations, simplify corporate structures, or absorb subsidiary functions into the bank charter. For JPMorgan Chase, the nation's largest bank by assets, affiliate mergers are routine corporate housekeeping — but each one reshapes the entity structure that regulators supervise.
33 FOCUS Reports Tie Monthly Record
Thirty-three FOCUS reports were filed — tying the February record set on February 19. The sustained pace of FOCUS filings throughout the month has produced a cumulative total that far exceeds typical February volumes, driven by quarterly reporting deadlines and institutional batch processing.
Three New Broker-Dealers Register
Three new broker-dealers registered: Lurima Capital Ltd in Denver, Cosmos Management LLC in Austin, and Merin Global Forex Markets Ltd. in Albany. The geographic diversity — Colorado, Texas, and New York — continues February's pattern of new firm formation outside traditional financial centers.
Across the Wire
Six SEC announcements, six OCC branch establishments, one branch closing, three RIA graduations, and one Fed announcement rounded out the day. The absence of enforcement actions, personnel changes, and advisor moves on a Monday is unusual and suggests the data reflects weekend processing rather than live business-day activity.
All data sourced from FINRA BrokerCheck, SEC EDGAR, Federal Reserve, CFTC, OCC, and the Finleet Terminal as of February 23, 2026. Entity profiles are available at terminal.finleet.com.