ABA is seeking participants for its agricultural lenders survey, which the association conducts annually with Farmer Mac. The survey examines overall industry sentiment of the farm economy, expectations on land values, prospects for the coming year and issues facing the broader economy. Lenders who have already signed up or who have participated in previous surveys should have already received an email invitation to participate in this year’s survey. New respondents can sign up here to participate in the survey. For more information, contact ABA’s Tyler Mondres.

As Senate leaders continue to negotiate provisions in the latest round of legislative coronavirus relief, the 51 state bankers associations yesterday urged them to include S. 4159, the E-Sign Modernization Act, in the package. Originally authored by Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), the bill would streamline how consumers consent to receiving electronic documents, such as bank statements, account information and contracts.

The bill would update the 20-year-old E-Sign Act to reflect advancements in technology and shifting consumer preferences. Specifically, it would remove the current requirement for consumers to reasonably demonstrate that they can access documents electronically before they can receive an electronic version—which the groups noted created obstacles for companies of all sizes during the coronavirus pandemic.

IRAs are one of the most complicated areas of bank personnel responsibility, and it is not possible to learn and understand everything. Continual education is necessary to ensure confidence. Working with IRAs is a process and must start with a strong foundation. The SDBA’s 2020 IRA School on Sept. 29 to Oct. 2, which will be offered live in Sioux Falls and virtually, can provide this foundation through a comprehensive curriculum. 

Days one to three of the school will cover new and current IRA material, and previous topics covered at the school will be expanded. Day four of the school, which is optional, is for anyone who is involved indirectly or directly in IRA operations, reporting, auditing or compliance and covers how the SECURE Act will affect bank operations. 

These past few months have seen rapid, unprecedented changes as firms grapple with the fallout of the coronavirus and resulting shutdowns, as well as civic unrest and questions about the future of financial services. It’s a tumultuous time, and it’s not easy to sort out the important information from the noise.

To make that easier, Promontory Interfinancial Network has started a podcast, Banking with Interest, which is dedicated to talking directly with experts about the forces reshaping financial services—and what the industry should be doing to meet the challenges of the moment.

With the COVID-19 pandemic continuing to disrupt the normal circulation of coinage in the U.S. economy, the U.S. Coin Task Force convened by the Federal Reserve issued a statement last Friday describing the circulation slowdown and urging consumers to get coins back into use.

The task force—which includes ABA, alongside representatives from the Fed, the U.S. Mint, the armored car industry, food distribution and other sectors—urged consumers to start spending the coins they have at home (while observing coronavirus-related precautions), deposit coins at their financial institutions and redeem coins at retail coin kiosks. The task force also urged people to use the hashtag #getcoinmoving in social media posts to help the public understand that the circulation slowdown is not a coin shortage.

With H.R. 7777, a bill to simplify the forgiveness process for Paycheck Protection Program loans, recently introduced in the House, ABA continues urging bankers to use the Secure American Opportunity grassroots platform to ask their members of Congress to support the bill.

This legislation—which has a companion bill in the Senate—would allow PPP loans of $150,000 or less to be forgiven once the borrower completes a one-page forgiveness attestation. ABA asks bankers to add their voices to the chorus and contact their representatives. The bill is expected to ease the forgiveness process for approximately 86% of PPP borrowers, in addition to saving an estimated $7 billion and hours of paperwork. Contact your representative now.

The Eide Bailly Bank Salary and Fringe Benefit Survey is designed to provide banks with reliable and affordable data on more than 50 common positions in a community bank based on institution asset size and state and local demographics. Each year, banks participate in the annual bank salary and fringe benefit survey to obtain valuable information on salary trends and compensation programs for the banking industry.

Eide Bailly is offering the survey, which is endorsed by the SDBA, in a digital format to participating banks. An invitation with a link to participate in the survey will be sent via email to bank management in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming by Monday, July 27, and banks will have 30 days to complete the survey. The 2020 survey is based on salary data as of April 30, 2020

Registration is now open for the SDBA's Virtual Bank Technology Conference to be held Sept. 9-10. In light of the current COVID situation, this conference is being offered virtually via Zoom to allow participation in a safe manner. 

The conference is designed to provide support as you keep on top of technology trends and scams, navigate the business of banking, and build and sustain your bank’s technology strategy. Join host and emcee, Trent Fleming, as we discuss timely technology topics that can help you as you make decisions that impact your bank, your staff and your customers. 

Steve Hayes, president and CEO of Dakota Prairie Bank in Fort Pierre, is one of three new appointments to the FDIC's Advisory Committee on Community Banking.  The other new members are Teri Messerschmitt, South Ottumwa Savings Bank, Ottumwa, Iowa, and Patty Mongold, Mt. McKinley Bank, Fairbanks, Alaska. 

Established in 2009, the Advisory Committee shares input with the FDIC on a broad range of community bank policy and regulatory matters. Committee members represent a cross-section of community bankers from around the country.

Registration is now open for ABA’s first-ever Unconventional Convention—a new virtual event taking place Oct. 19-20 that brings together live and on-demand content for bankers to help excel in their field, collaborate and strategize and plan for the challenges ahead. The Unconventional Convention will feature dedicated sessions for bank marketers, CFOs and operations professionals, agricultural bankers and CEOs, as well as sessions with a fintech and payments focus.‌

Keynoting the convention this year will be Federal Reserve Vice Chairman Rich Clarida, agricultural economist David Kohl and CNN political analyst Bakari Sellers. Additional keynote speakers will be announced in the coming days. ‌

To help banks’ ongoing work to enhance diversity, equity and inclusion within their workforce, ABA has launched a new DEI page on aba.com. The page includes several new resources, including tips for recruiting and retaining a diverse workforce, as well as new videos geared toward increasing board diversity.

Bankers can also find the latest DEI news and resources, read ABA’s response to the national conversation on racial justice and inequity, access training and events on DEI topics and view examples of what banks of all sizes are doing and saying about diversity, equity and inclusion. View the webpage

The ABA is urging bankers to contact their lawmakers and urge them to support legislation that would significantly streamline the forgiveness process for loans made through the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program. 

The PPP Small Business Forgiveness Act, a bipartisan Senate bill, would allow PPP loans of $150,000 or less to be forgiven once the borrower completes a one-page forgiveness attestation. The bill is expected to ease the forgiveness process for approximately 86% of PPP borrowers, in addition to saving an estimated $7 billion and hours of paperwork.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act passed by Congress authorized nearly $1 billion in additional loan guarantee authority for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and created the Business and Industry (B&I) CARES Act Program. 

For the first time, agricultural producers may access this program if they are ineligible for financing from USDA’s Farm Service Agency. Any loan guaranteed by the B&I CARES Act Program must be used as working capital to prevent, prepare for or respond to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

• View a B&I CARES Act Program Power Point presentation.
• View a B&I CARES Act Program fact sheet.
• Learn more at the B&I CARES Act Program website. 

The Federal Reserve yesterday unveiled an interactive state-by-state map listing lenders participating in the Main Street Lending Program that have chosen to be listed and are currently accepting applications from new customers. MSLP registered lenders that wish to be added to the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston’s list can email [email protected]. The Boston Fed will update the listing regularly as new lenders complete the registration process and elect to be included on the map.

Under the MSLP, businesses may apply for funding through a registered lender, which will then determine eligibility using its own underwriting criteria. The Fed will purchase up to 95% of MSLP loans made through its MSLP facility. Lenders will retain the other 5%. Read more and view the list. For more information, contact ABA’s Shaun Kern or Hu Benton.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) on Monday released public data on Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) participants, including borrowers and lenders, as of June 30.

For loans $150,000 and above, SBA disclosed the name and location of the business receiving the loan, the number of employees benefiting, the name of the lender, the congressional district of the borrower and a range where the loan amount falls. For loans below $150,000, SBA did not release borrower names but did include precise loan amounts. The public data set did not include information on PPP loans that were canceled.

The Federal Reserve announced on Tuesday that it is forming a task force to address the issue of low coin inventories during the coronavirus pandemic—an issue that several ABA members have raised in recent days. The task force—which includes representatives from the Fed, the U.S. Mint, armored carriers and several industry stakeholders including ABA—will work to identify and implement potential solutions to reduce these disruptions. The task force will hold its first meeting in early July, with the goal of creating its first set of recommendations by the end of the month.

With many physical retail businesses and other firms closed during the pandemic, the Fed noted that the coin supply chain has seen significant disruption in recent days. “The Federal Reserve is working on many fronts with our industry partners, including the U.S. Mint, to minimize supply constraints and maximize coin production capacity,” the Fed noted. “We are encouraging depository institutions to order only the coin they need to meet near-term customer demand and to remove barriers to customer coin deposits.” Read more . For more information, contact ABA’s Steve Kenneally.

Mike Klumpp, Citibank, Sioux Falls, and Jesse Block, First Fidelity Bank, Platte, have been appointed to the SDBA Board of Directors. The SDBA is the professional and trade association for South Dakota’s financial services industry and helps educate, advocate and grow a diverse mix of financial institutions throughout the state.

Mike Klumpp
As site president for Citibank in Sioux Falls, Mike Klumpp is responsible for driving and executing site governance, people strategy, site culture and community involvement. A native of northwest Iowa, Klumpp earned a finance degree at Iowa State University prior to joining Citi in 1988 as a financial analyst. He has served in a variety of managerial roles in security operations and fraud prevention and, in addition to his role as site president, is currently the director of control for Citi’s Global Consumer Bank Fraud Prevention group.

The South Dakota Bankers Association (SDBA), the professional and trade association for South Dakota’s financial services industry, elected officers for its 2020-2021 Board of Directors. The SDBA is honored to have the following individuals serve as officers:

• Chair: Steve Bumann, CFO, BankWest, Inc., Pierre
• Chair-Elect: Kristina Schaefer, General Counsel & Chief Risk Officer, First Bank & Trust, Sioux Falls
• Vice Chair: David Bangasser, Southern Region President, Dacotah Bank, Sioux Falls
• Immediate Past Chair: Shawn Rost, South Dakota Market President, First Interstate Bank, Rapid City

The official election took place at the SDBA’s Annual Business Meeting held virtually on June 9. The term for the new officers is effective now through next year’s Annual Business Meeting.

Lenders nationwide had made approximately 4.7 million PPP loans totaling $515 billion as of last Saturday, SBA reported over the weekend. Forty-four percent of all PPP loans were made by lenders with less than $10 billion in assets, 19% were made by institutions with $10 billion to $50 billion in assets, and 37% were made by institutions with more than $50 billion in assets. The overall average loan size was $110,000.

Recognizing the significant and long-lasting effects of the coronavirus pandemic on financial institutions, federal and state financial regulators on Tuesday issued joint guidance for how examiners should assess the effects of COVID-19 on the safety and soundness of banks and credit unions. The guidance directs examiners to assess institutions according to existing agency policies and procedures and to consider the appropriateness of management actions to address COVID-19 challenges. It provides specific instructions for examiners when considering an institution’s risk assessment, capital adequacy, asset quality, management actions, earnings, liquidity and market risk sensitivity.‌

“Examiners should assess the reasonableness of management’s actions in response to the pandemic given the institution’s business strategy and operational capacity in the distressed economic and business environment in which the institution operates,” the agencies said. “When assigning the composite and component ratings, examiners will review management’s assessment of risks presented by the pandemic, considering the institution’s size, complexity and risk profile.”