ICBA concerns with OCC nomination make headlines

The New York Times covered ICBA’s concerns with the nomination of Cornell University law professor Saule Omarova for comptroller of the currency.

Details: The article cites ICBA concerns with Omarova’s proposals to overhaul the banking system and says ICBA’s concerns could threaten her confirmation.

Quote: “The core of all of this and the source of our most significant concerns is we look at everything that she has said or written publicly, there are bold ideas that essentially look at eliminating the banking system as we know it today,” ICBA President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey told the paper.

Background: ICBA expressed concerns following President Joe Biden’s announcement last month that he intends to nominate Omarova to head the OCC.

Proposals: In a news release, ICBA cited her proposals to:

• Migrate the retail banking system to the Federal Reserve.
• Establish government banking FedAccounts that the Fed is not legally permitted to offer.

Next: ICBA remains in conversation with policymakers about the nomination.