ICBA urges Congress to join debate over payments charter

ICBA and other groups this week urged Congress to get involved in the OCC's efforts to grant commercial companies like Amazon or Facebook a national payments charter.

In a joint letter to congressional leaders, the groups said the agency's proposed payments charter raises concerns over the separation of banking and commerce, safety and soundness and consumer protection, and the introduction of systemic risk into the payments system.

ICBA has repeatedly expressed opposition to a narrowly focused payments charter in previous letters to the OCC and Congress and in a written statement to the House Task Force on Financial Technology.