Banking Supervision

The Federal Reserve promotes the safety and soundness of individual financial institutions and monitors their impact on the financial system as a whole. It also ensures financial institutions are protecting consumers. The Federal Reserve System is responsible for supervising — monitoring, inspecting and examining — certain financial institutions to ensure that they comply with rules and regulations related to both safety and soundness and consumer protection. Bank examiners — employees of the Federal Reserve and other bank regulators — do not run or manage banks. Rather, they work to understand banks' operations, major risks, how well banks manage those risks and whether banks have sufficient financial and managerial resources. When a bank does not manage its risk well or have sufficient financial resources, examiners require the bank to take corrective action.

The Richmond Fed supervises and regulates a wide range of financial institutions including those that operate exclusively in small rural towns or bustling cities, across multiple states within the Fifth District as well as some of the largest financial institutions that operate across the nation and around the world. Did you know, that just like consumers and businesses, financial institutions have to borrow money, too? To meet this critical need, we provide financial institutions with access to liquidity through the Fed’s discount window.

Banking supervision at the federal level is carried out by three agencies: the Federal Reserve, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). State banking agencies also supervise certain banks. Each agency supervises banks organized under different types of legal charters. Learn more about our team and understanding Federal Reserve Supervision.

Banking Supervision

What is the role of the Federal Reserve in banking supervision? The Federal Reserve promotes the safety and soundness of individual financial institutions and monitors their impact on the financial system as a whole. Federal Reserve Supervision ensures that firms comply with applicable rules and regulations and operate in a safe and sound manner. Our risk-based bank supervision approach scales our work to an institution’s size and complexity.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond is delegated authority by the Federal Reserve System’s Board of Governors to supervise financial institutions headquartered in the Fifth Federal Reserve District (Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Washington D.C. and parts of West Virginia). Supervised institutions include state-chartered banks that elect to become Federal Reserve members, bank holding companies, savings and loan holding companies, and foreign-bank operations. Some operate only in rural towns or cities; others across multiple states; and others are some of the nation’s and world’s largest financial institutions. Learn about our Department Leadership.

Banking supervision at the federal level is carried out by four agencies that collaborate as appropriate: the Federal Reserve, established by Congress via the Federal Reserve Act; Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC); Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC); and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). State banking agencies also supervise certain banks. Which agency supervises each financial institution depends on the bank’s legal charter.

Bank Examiners

What are the responsibilities of bank examiners?

Bank examiners—employees of the Federal Reserve and other agencies—examine, inspect, monitor, review, and analyze bank data and reports. We work to ensure that the firms we supervise are handling their risks appropriately and are positioned to be resilient during challenging business conditions.

Did you know?

A community and regional bank examiner may examine a portfolio of banks. On the other hand, for large financial institutions, a whole supervisory team may be responsible for one firm.

About Our Supervision, Regulation and Credit Department

We work to foster strong relationships with Fifth District financial institutions. We offer expertise and support in supervision, compliance, regulation, financial reporting, credit risk management and quantitative supervision research to the financial services industry. Experienced team members across our locations welcome opportunities to add value to financial institutions.

Community and Regional Safety and Soundness Supervision

We aim to ensure that community banks (with less than $10 billion in assets) and regional banks (with assets from $10 billion to $100 billion) maintain risk-management capabilities appropriate to their size and complexity. Our approach focuses supervision examination resources on higher-risk areas of each member bank’s operations.

Large Financial Institution Supervision

We supervise large firms with assets over $100 billion, coordinating with regional Reserve Banks nationwide. We organize our work into the Large Institution Supervision Coordinating Committee and Large and Foreign Banking Organization supervisory programs.

Consumer Affairs

Our team supervises state member banks and bank holding companies to ensure compliance with consumer protection laws and regulations, including fair lending. We also evaluate bank performance under the Community Reinvestment Act to encourage lending, investment and services in Fifth District communities.

Mergers and Acquisitions

We handle membership applications and notifications from bank holding companies, state member banks and foreign organizations as well as individuals—including bank holding company formations/acquisitions, change in controlling interest of a banking organization, bank mergers and establishing new branches.

Quantitative Supervision and Research

Our financial economists and quantitative analysts conduct banking research and analysis. This supports supervisory work, stress test modeling, banking portfolio analysis and model risk management. We also publish original financial and supervisory research in academic and professional journals.

Statistics

Our Statistics team analyzes financial and organizational structure data gathered from Fifth District institutions. In addition to ensuring data owners have accurate information, Statistics conducts outreach and provides guidance and training on financial and regulatory reporting activities.

Credit Risk Management and Reserves

We manage Federal Reserve lending to depository institutions via the discount window, ensure Interest on Reserve Balances is paid in accordance with regulations and administer the Payment System Risk policy. These are important tools for supporting the liquidity and stability of the banking system.

Enforcements

We provide a centralized and consistent approach to implementing, monitoring and terminating all supervisory enforcement actions within the Fifth District, in coordination with Board of Governors’ enforcement staff.

Strategy, Talent and Operations

This internal business partner supports our department’s teams. We cover business enablement; essential records and processing; information and security; strategy and innovation; talent management and quality management. The team also hosts the Cyber Sim Lab scenario analysis to strengthen examiners and bankers’ understanding of cyber risks.

Banking Supervision

Banking Supervision

Supervision & Credit

Bank Examiners

Did you know?

About Our Supervision, Regulation and Credit Department