Banking

Amid the many other differences between presidential nominees Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, the two have proposed very different tax law changes. As opposed to trying to make sense of the many subjective differences between the candidates, understanding how each candidate could impact tax policy may be the best way for businesses and individuals to compose an informed plan for the future.

As we are all aware by now, data breaches are a fact of life for most businesses – and in particular for businesses that collect or engage private customer data within an internal electronic network. The annual Ponemon Cost of Data Breach Study: Global Analysis report provides indisputable evidence that cybercrime is a permanent risk organizations need to be prepared to manage.[1] In particular, highly regulated industries (i.e., financial services and healthcare) have the most costly data breaches because of fines and the higher-than-average rate of lost business and customers.

Verizon’s Data Breach Investigations Report (DBIR) is the most comprehensive and cited source of statistical data and trends related to cyber security incidents. Data breaches are traced, categorized, and analyzed to provide intelligence used by security organizations and businesses of many types and categories.

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) today (June 16, 2016) issued its long-awaited Accounting Standards Update (ASU) regarding its new loan loss accounting framework. The Current Expected Credit Loss model (CECL) was first proposed in 2012. With its adoption, 40 years of standards related to how banks manage their business change, posing significant compliance and operational challenges for banks.

Not unlike retailers, banks are challenged to provide a quality, consistent customer experience in their locations and online. Analysts have said that we’re in the Age of the Consumer, and that is apparent – people want to feel like their bank knows them, understands what they want and need, and helps to fulfill those wants and needs from any channel they choose. They want personalization, both with regard to the relationship they have with their bank, and in the product/service mix they are offered.

We recently shared some statistics that demonstrate the cost of cybercrime by industry. Particularly, that the annual combined loss from cybercrime in the US exceeded $525 million (USD) in 2015. While financial institutions have the highest risk of threat and the highest average annual costs caused by cybercrime, virtually every industry is at risk. 

From May 11-15, 2016, more than 600 bank industry professionals participated in the 128^th annual Mississippi Bankers Association Convention. Held in beautiful Sandestin Florida, this conference offered participants time for professional, social, family, and leisure.

Since 2015, an estimated 4,000 fintech (“finance” + “technology”) firms have come into the marketplace, garnering more than $25 billion in capital. While that number is only a fraction of the value of the traditional banking industry, these companies are disrupting traditional financial businesses as they gained their share of customers. The influence of this market disruptor is undisputed. App based financial providers like Square, PayPal, Apple Pay, and Venmo came on the scene and quickly revolutionized how consumers exchange money.

On April 27, 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) met to discuss the costs and benefits of its planned standard for writing down bad loans and securities. During that session, the board voted to proceed with a new accounting standard that provides timelier financial reporting of expected credit losses on loans (CECL) and other financial instruments held by financial institutions and other organizations. 

As of 2015, companies in the United States reported annual combined losses exceeding $525 million (USD) due to cyber crime. The majority of these losses stem from malicious code and denial of service attacks. [1]

Have you heard? FASB just simplified the way companies account for stock-based compensation. That’s right, simplifying. We don’t often hear news like this, so it’s worth getting excited! Read on for details about how the FASB simplification initiative is about to make your (accounting) life easier. 

As public banks and companies continue to grow, whether through mergers and acquisitions or organically, it’s not unusual for them to forget about important regulations.

In this blog, we wanted to focus on the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that require companies to provide an annual report on internal controls for their fiscal year end.[1] In particular, these internal control report requirements impact accelerated and large accelerated filers.[2]

"The biggest difficulty in Fintech is predicting when the banking defenses begin to come down, as they realize they have to react to the fact that banking services are going to be delivered digitally. Those bricks are coming down one brick at a time, unfortunately, as opposed to the wall coming down. But they are coming down, and my advice is don’t burn all your money thinking you can knock the wall down. But if you’re sharp and pay attention, and you can tailor your product and spend to the right trajectory, you can pace it so as the bricks come down, you’re able to go over the top." - Pete Kight, VC, Founder of CheckFree