Inside this issue:
New Email Addresses 2 for Department Staff
2017 State Holidays 2
Action on Applications 3 for the Month
DBF Outreach
4
News and topics of interest to financial institutions regulated by the Department of Banking and Finance
October 2016
Managing Reputation Risk Through Social Media
More and more financial institutions are utilizing social media (e.g., Facebook, Twitter) to carryout marketing, customer interaction, and/or community involvement efforts. Social media can be a great outlet to advertise and interact with the customer base; however, negative feedback can be damaging to an institution's reputation. If your institution currently has a presence on social media, or if you are contemplating having a presence in the future, the following article from Credit Union Times provides five helpful tips on responding to negative complaints through social media: "5 Ways to Fight Social Media Fiascos".
Cybersecurity Assessment Tool
On October 17, 2016, the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) issued a frequently asked questions (FAQ) guide related to the Cybersecurity Assessment Tool (Tool). The FAQ guide answers questions and clarifies points in the Tool and supporting materials based on questions received by the FFIEC members over the course of the last year. The Tool was developed to help management determine an institution's risk profile and determine an institution's inherent risks and cybersecurity preparedness. The Tool provides a repeatable and measurable process that management may use to measure cybersecurity preparedness over time. The Tool can be accessed at www.ffiec.gov/cybersecurity.htm.
Online Examiner's Guide for Credit Unions
On October 21, 2016, the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) released an online Examiner's Guide, a new interactive tool with searchable content, for credit union staff and examiners. With the launch of the online guide, the NCUA also issued updated guidance on the areas of interest rate risk, risk-focused exams, total analysis process and fidelity bond coverage. The guide was developed by the NCUA working with the National Exam Committee (NEC). The NEC gathered comments from examiners regarding the Examiner's Guide, exam processes, procedures, and emerging issues affecting exams. National Association of State Credit Union Supervisors representatives on the NEC are Denise St. Pierre (NH), Dawn McCaskill (GA), and Edward Schutte (OR). The Examiner's Guide can be viewed at https:// www.ncua.gov/newsroom/Pages/news-2016-oct-ncua-launches-new-examiners-guide.aspx.
Supervision Division Personnel Changes
Justin McElheney has been promoted to the position of Supervisory Manager. Justin is a graduate of the Terry College of Business at the University of Georgia with a Bachelor's of Business Administration in Organization Management. Justin joined the Northeast District (District 2) in October 2005 as an Assistant Financial Examiner and was promoted to Supervisory Examiner in April 2012. Justin has worked with a wide range of financial institutions in both size and complexity. He is both a Bank Security Act (BSA) and Information Technology (IT) Subject Matter Expert (SME) and has advanced training in Capital Markets. He is also a Certified Examinations Manager.
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October 2016
Supervisory Staff Changes
The Department has made some internal, strategic changes regarding distribution of workloads for supervisory staff related to oversight of state chartered institutions. Effective November 2, 2016, assignments are as follows:
Brittany Bohannon, Supervisory Manager (Trust Specialist; Accounting Specialist): Banks and Holding Companies (Districts 1 and 5); Merchant Acquirer Limited Purpose Banks bbohannon@dbf.state.ga.us 770-986-5049
Mathew Robinson, Supervisory Manager (Large Institution Specialist): Banks and Holding Companies (District 2, United Community Bank, Fidelity Bank); Credit Unions (Districts 1 and 2) mrobinson@dbf.state.ga.us 770-986-1627
Justin McElheney, Supervisory Manager (SME for Compliance with the BSA and SME for IT; Central Point of Contact for National Credit Union Administration/Credit Union Specialist): Banks and Holding Companies (District 4); Credit Unions (Districts 4 and 5) jmcelheney@dbf.state.ga.us 770-986-1643
Heather Ensminger, Training Director and Large Institutions Manager (Trust Specialist; SME for Compliance with the BSA): SunTrust Bank, Synovus Bank, Reliance Trust Company and related holding companies hensminger@dbf.state.ga.us 770-986-5021
Murali Ramachandran, Supervisory Manager (Applications; Capital Markets Specialist) Corporate Activities; Business Analyst mramachandran@dbf.state.ga.us 770-986-1645
Supervisory Manager Susan Andrews and Acting Supervisory Manager Dawn McCaskill are primarily assigned to assisting with IT conversions.
New Email Addresses for Department Staff
Effective November 14, 2016, the email addresses for all Department personnel will change to "first initial last name"@dbf.state.ga.us. (For example: John Doe = jdoe@dbf.state.ga.us.) Please update your address book accordingly.
2017 State Holidays
Pursuant to O.C.G.A. 1-4-1, the following is the list of state holidays when the Capitol and state agencies will be closed in 2017:
New Year's Day (January 1) - will be observed on Monday, January 2 Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Birthday - Monday, January 16 State Holiday (January 19) - will be observed on Friday, November 24 Washington's Birthday (February 20) - will be observed on Tuesday, December 26 State Holiday (April 26) - will be observed on Monday, April 24 Memorial Day - Monday, May 29 Independence Day - Tuesday, July 4 Labor Day - Monday, September 4 Columbus Day - Monday, October 9 Veterans Day (November 11) - will be observed on Friday, November 10 Thanksgiving Day - Thursday, November 23 Christmas Day - Monday, December 25
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October 2016
Action on Applications for the Month
The following is a summary of official action taken on applications by state financial institutions under Title 7, Chapter 1 of the O.C.G.A. and petitions for certificate of incorporation of financial institutions and other matters of interest during the month of October 2016:
PREVIOUS NAME
AB&T National Bank Albany, Dougherty County
FINANCIAL INSTITUTION CONVERSIONS
CONVERTED TO
APPROVAL DATE
AB&T
Pending
EFFECTIVE DATE
APPLICATIONS TO ESTABLISH A BRANCH OFFICE
FINANCIAL INSTITUTION
BRANCH OFFICE
APPROVAL DATE
Members First Credit Union Decatur
Hiram High School 702 Virgie Ballentine Drive Hiram, GA 30141 Paulding County
09-06-2016
Metro City Bank Doraville
Bayside 215-45 Northern Boulevard Bayside, NY 11361 Queens County
11-30-2015
BEGIN BUSINESS DATE
10-05-2016
10-27-2016
SunMark Community Bank Hawkinsville
Perry 1005 Northside Drive Perry, GA 31069 Houston County
01-14-2016
10-12-2016
PROPOSED NAME First IC Bank
APPLICATIONS FOR RESERVATION OF A NAME
COUNTY
APPLICANT
DeKalb County
Mr. David Park Alston & Bird LLP One Atlantic Center 1201 West Peachtree Street Atlanta, Georgia 30309-3424
FINANCIAL INSTITUTION (SURVIVOR)
First National Bank of Decatur County Bainbridge, GA
National Bank of Commerce Birmingham, AL
FINANCIAL INSTITUTION MERGERS
MERGED INSTITUTION Citizens Bank Cairo, GA
Private Bank of Buckhead Atlanta, GA
APPROVAL EFFECTIVE
DATE
DATE
10-12-2016 10-14-2016
10-31-2016
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South State Bank Columbia, SC
Pinnacle Bank Elberton, GA
State Bank and Trust Company Macon, GA
State Bank and Trust Company Macon, GA
Georgia Bank & Trust Company of Augusta Augusta, GA
Independence Bank of Georgia Braselton, GA
The National Bank of Georgia Athens, GA
S Bank Glennville, GA
10-03-2016 Pending Pending Pending
October 2016
APPLICATIONS TO BECOME A BANK HOLDING COMPANY AND/OR TO ACQUIRE VOTING STOCK OF A FINANCIAL INSTITUTION
BANK HOLDING COMPANY
South State Corporation Columbia, SC
TO ACQUIRE
Southeastern Bank Financial Corporation Augusta, GA
APPROVAL DATE
10-03-2016
First IC Corporation Doraville, GA
First Intercontinental Bank Doraville, GA
Pending
DBF Outreach AND UPCOMING SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS
FDIC Community Banking Initiative - De Novo Outreach Meeting - Deputy Commissioner for Supervision Melissa Sneed will be participating in the FDIC's De Novo Outreach Meeting at the FDIC's Atlanta Regional Office on November 29, 2016. Visit https://www.fdic.gov/news/conferences/communitybanking/2016/DeNovo/ for more information about this event.
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October 2016
Sign-up to Receive this Publication:
This publication is delivered to interested parties via e-mail and is also available from the Department's website at: http://dbf.georgia.gov/ under Publications, Financial Institutions Bulletin.
If you would like to be added to our distribution list, send an e-mail to dbfpress@dbf.state.ga.us stating your name and e-mail address. Please be sure to include "Subscribe to Financial Institutions Bulletin" in the Subject line.
The Department is the state agency that regulates and examines Georgia state-chartered banks, state-chartered credit unions, state-chartered trust companies, and bank holding companies that own Georgia statechartered financial institutions. The Department also has responsibility for the supervision, regulation, and examination of Merchant Acquirer Limited Purpose Banks chartered in Georgia.
In addition, the Department has regulatory and/or licensing authority over mortgage brokers, lenders and processors, mortgage loan originators, check cashers, sellers-issuers of payment instruments, money transmitters, and international banking organizations.
Our Mission is to promote safe, sound, competitive financial services in Georgia through innovative, responsive regulation and supervision.
Our Vision is to be a willing and able partner with our regulated entities in order to support vibrant economic growth and prosperity in Georgia.
Department of Banking and Finance 2990 Brandywine Road, Suite 200 Atlanta, Georgia 30341-5565 Phone: (770) 986-1633 Fax: (770) 986-1654 or 1655 http://dbf.georgia.gov/ Email: dbfpress@dbf.state.ga.us