Law 360, October 28, 2020, SoFi Clears Initial OCC Hurdle In Quest To Launch Bank
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency stated it has granted conditional approval to Social Inc.’s application for a full-service National bank charter, thus moving it one step forward to launching the SoFi Bank NA. It is understood that SoFi Bank will seek membership with the Federal Reserve system and become insured within the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. SoFi Bank NA will be based in Utah, and is still in the process of completing organizational steps before it’s final approval from the OCC before opening for business.
“This preliminary conditional approval from the OCC is a testament to the mission driven company we have built, the employees who help it grow, and the over 1.5 million members we currently serve,” SoFi CEO Anthony Noto said. “By pursuing a national bank charter, we hope to be able to give consumers more choices and enhanced value when it comes to a full suite of financial services, which can help even more people achieve financial independence.”A national bank charter would allow SoFi to take customer deposits and make loans without using a bank partner. The company submitted its charter application to the OCC in July, nearly three years after it backed offan earlier effort to create a Utah industrial bank amid internal turmoil touched off by sexual harassment and employee mistreatment claims from former staff. In its Oct. 27 decision letter, the OCC indicated that SoFi’s bank will be required to have minimuminitial paid-in capital of $550 million. At least 30% of this capital must be provided in cash, while the rest can be “high-quality, held-for-sale loans as further described in the Bank’s application and business plan,” the agency said.
