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Welcome to Banker's Academy

With 30+ years of experience, Banker's Academy is the leading global provider of training solutions to the financial community. We specialize in BSA/AML, Compliance Officer, HR Professional, Teller and Branch Manager Training. We’re proud to have partnered with over 2,500 clients worldwide in various financial services industries, with a focus on banks, credit unions, and money service businesses. Let us help you reach your target audience with an innovative, results-driven educational experience.

Our Offerings

  • Extensive Catalog of required Compliance Courses maintained by Subject Matter Experts
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  • Excellent skills and concept training for Banking Industry personnel - essentials to advanced.
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  • Powerful Human Resource courses to help HR Admins achieve professional, ethical compliance for their organizations.
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  • Business Professional Skills suitable for anyone seeking to be a thought leader in their company
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  • MS Office Suite 2010 - Full beginning to advanced coverage with videos and simulations.
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  • Years of experience helping our clients define, design, develop and implement excellent learning strategies from concept to post assessment.
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  • Modern Instructional design is required for an increasingly mobile workforce. Our experts are always refining and updating our methods to maximize the new micro-learning object approach.
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  • Defining and developing a competency framework is a large undertaking. We will help you create a valid, useful tool that can be effectuated within our Learning Management System and provide excellent ROI.
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  • Employee Onboarding processes can be a challenge to organize, manage and report, but it is essential to get it right. We have automation solutions that are easy and reliable to use.
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  • Advanced, immersive System Simulations Training. We specialize in core banking systems.
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  • Product Launches need to sell and inform. We create interactive, modern launch support materials that can convey everything from simple to complex value propositions.
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  • We can custom create courses to any specification, quick and simple to sophisticated and complex.
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FDIC

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)

Banks examined for CRA compliance.

At the beginning of April, the FDIC issued its list of state nonmember banks recently evaluated for compliance with the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA). The list covers evaluation ratings that the FDIC assigned to institutions in January 2015.

The list can be found here.

EGRPRA outreach meetings announced.

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the FDIC, and the OCC, collectively known as the federal banking agencies, announced that they will hold an outreach meeting on Monday, May 4, as part of their regulatory review under the Economic Growth and Regulatory Paperwork Reduction Act of 1996 (EGRPRA). The meeting is the third in a series. The scope of the EGRPRA has also been expanded to cover more recent regulations.

More information can be found here.

Input sought on new recordkeeping standards.

The FDIC announced that it was seeking input on potential new recordkeeping standards for a limited number of FDIC-insured institutions with a large number of deposit accounts. Comments are being accepted for 90 days after the publication of the advanced notice of proposed rulemaking. 

More information on the standards can be found here.

March enforcement actions made public.

The FDIC published a list of administrative enforcement actions taken against banks and individuals in March. There were a total of 27 orders and two notices, including consent orders, cease and desist orders, removal and prohibitions orders, and one civil money penalty of $10,600.

The orders can be viewed here.

OCC

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)

Temporary extension given for certain protections under SCRA.

The OCC issued a bulletin information national banks, federal savings associations, and federal branches and agencies of foreign banks (OCC-supervised institutions) of the temporary extension of certain protections under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA), enacted by the Foreclosure Relief and Extension for Servicemembers Act of 2014. The extention expires on December 31, 2015. 

More information can be found here.

Counterfeit cashier’s checks alert issued in connection with digital shopper scam.

The OCC issued an alert concerning a New York bank which reported that counterfeit cashier’s checks using a correct routing number of 021406667 were being presented for payment nationwide in connection with a digital shopper scam. The checks were made payable in the amounts of $2,360 and $2,780.

More information can be found here.

RESPA handbook revised.

The OCC issued a bulletin announcing the revision of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) booklet of the Comptroller’s Handbook. The revised booklet replaces a similarly-titled booklet issued in October 2011 and provides updated information resulting from recent changes made to Regulation X regarding mortgage servicing and loss mitigation.

The full statement can be viewed here.

SEC

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

$12 million penalty charged for breach of fiduciary duty.

The SEC charged a limited liability corporation with reaching its fiduciary duty by failing to disclose a conflict of interest created by the outside business activity of a top-performing portfolio manager. The company agreed to pay the $12 million penalty and undergo an independent compliance review.

The full announcement can be viewed here.

10 charged with fraud in penny stock scheme.

The SEC announced charges against 10 individuals involved in a penny s tock scheme. In the scheme, the individuals offered and sold penny stock in undisclosed “blank check” companies bound for reverse mergers while misrepresenting to the public that they were promising startups with business plans. Most of the blank check companies were sold for a total of approximately $6 million in ill-gotten gains.

 More information can be found here.

Advisor accused of stealing $20 million from customers.

The SEC charged a New York City-based financial advisor for allegedly stealing approximately $20 million from customers to fund his own brokerage accounts and then squandering the bulk of the money in highly unprofitable options trading. Criminal charges were also filed against the individual by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.

More information on the case can be found here.

CFPB

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)

FDCPA violators face $50,000 CMP and other penalties.

The CFPB announced an enforcement action against a nationwide debt collection operation for the alleged use of deceptive threats of criminal prosecution and jail time in order to intimidate consumers into paying debts for bounced checks. The company also convinced consumers that they were required to enroll in a costly financial education program to avoid criminal charges. The CFPB action, if approved, would require the end of the illegal activities, a civil money penalty of $50,000, and new consumer disclosures and oversight of their program.

More information can be found here.

Lawsuit filed against robo-calling operation.

The CFPB filed a lawsuit against the ringleaders of a robo-call phantom debt collection operation, their companies, and their service providers for the alleged deployment of automated calls aimed at threatening, harassing, and deceiving consumers in the attempt to collect certain debts.

More information can be found here.

Mortgage lender to pay $250,000 penalty for deceptive ads.

In April the CFPB took action against a mortgage lending company for deceptive advertising practices, including ads that led consumers to believe that the company was affiliated with the U.S. government. The CFPB has issued a civil money penalty of $250,000 to the California-based mortgage lender for ads containing misrepresentations about loan interest rates and estimated monthly payments, including whether the interest rate was fixed or variable.

More information can be found here.

Bank refunds $49 million in illegal fees to consumers.

The CFPB took action against a bank for charging overdraft fees to consumers who had not opted-in for overdraft coverage. The bank also charged overdraft and non-sufficient funds fees on its deposit advance product despite claims that it would not. The bank was fined $7.5 million for its illegal actions, and was ordered to refund hundreds of thousands of consumers approximately $49 million in fees.

More information can be found here.

NCUA

National Credit Union Administration (NCUA)

Florida credit union liquidated.

The NCUA liquidated a Florida credit union after determining that the credit union had violated various provisions of its charter, bylaws and federal regulations. The credit union had served 616 members and had assets of $3 million. 

More information can be found here.

Seven individuals banned.

The NCUA announced a prohibition against seven individuals from participating in the affairs of any federally insured financial institution at the beginning of April. The individuals have pleaded guilty to crimes ranging from bank theft and embezzlement to bank fraud. The individuals were asked to pay restitution in amounts ranging from $50,000 to $15 million.

More information on the enforcement actions can be found here.

$520,440 in grants awarded

Through the first Community Development Revolving Loan Fund grant round in 2015, the NCUA’s Office of Small Credit Union Initiatives has awarded 153 low-income credit unions a total of $520,440 in grants for financially serving underserved communities.

More information can be found here.

FED

Federal Reserve Bank

Small Bank Holding Company Policy Statement expanded

The Federal Reserve Board issued a final rule expanding the applicability of its Small Bank Holding Company Policy Statement and also applying it to certain savings and loan holding companies. The rule implements a law passed in December 2014 and raises the asset threshold of the policy statement from $500 million to $1 billion in total consolidated assets, among other things.

The Federal Reserve press release can be found here.

Regulation D changes proposed

The Federal Reserve Board requested public comment on proposed technical changes to Regulation D concerning the calculation of interest payments on certain balances maintained by the depository institutions at Federal Reserve banks. Comments are requested within 30 days of publication.

More information can be found here.

Information released on the operating structure of LISCC program

The Federal Reserve Board released information concerning the operating structure of the Large Institution Supervision Coordinating Committee (LISCC) supervisory program. The LISCC program was established in 2010 to oversee and supervise the largest, most systemically important financial institutions.

The changes are detailed here.

FED

Department of Justice

Individuals sentenced in $29 million Medicare fraud conspiracy

The DOJ announced charges against a Detroit adult day care center and two home health care company owners for their roles in a Medicare fraud scheme. The individuals involved were sentenced to five, ten, and four years in prison for their respective roles in the scheme, and were asked to pay between $589,516 and $8.4 million. Charges included conspiracy to commit health care fraud, conspiracy to receive health care kickbacks, and destruction of documents in connection with a federal investigation.

More information on the charges can be found here.

$21.75 million for alleged False Claims Act violations

A Texas-based medical center agreed to pay over $21 million to settle allegations that it violated the Stark Statute and the False Claims Act by engaging in improper financial relationships with referring physicians. The allegations arose from a lawsuit filed by three whistleblowers, who will receive almost $6 million as a reward for the recoveries announced in the lawsuit.

More information on the case can be found here.

Officer pleads guilty to accepting over $78,000 in bribes

A former Virginia loan officer was charged and subsequently pleaded guilty for accepting more than $78,000 in bribes in return for recommending the approval of unqualified loan applications to the bank, among other misconduct. The individual admitted to intentionally ignoring the fact that one company had previously defaulted in 10 previous transactions guaranteed by the bank, causing the bank to lose almost $20 million.

More information on the charges can be found on the DOJ’s website here.

Doctor pleads guilty in $56 million fraud scheme

The DOJ announced charges against a Louisiana doctor who pleaded guilty to federal health care fraud charges. Allegedly the doctor wrote false home health care certifications used in a multi-million dollar Medicare fraud scheme. He is scheduled to be sentenced in August.

More information on the case can be found here.

Individuals plead guilty to Sherman Act violations

Two real estate investors from California agreed to plead guilty for their roles in bid rigging and fraud conspiracies at public real estate foreclosure auctions. Allegedly, the individuals conspired with others not to bid against one another, and instead to designate a winning bidder to obtain selected properties at public real estate foreclosure auctions.

More information about the charges filed can be found here.

Complaint filed in False Claims Act violations

The United States has filed a complaint against a mortgage lender headquartered in Detroit. The complaint maintains that the lender violated the False Claims Act by improperly originating and underwriting mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA).

More information about the scheme can be found on the DOJ's website.

Bank and subsidiary to pay $2.519 billion for wire fraud scheme

A wholly-owned subsidiary in London agreed to plead guilty to wire fraud for its role in manipulating the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR), a leading benchmark interest rate used in financial products and transactions around the world. The bank and its subsidiary together will pay $775 million in criminal penalties to the Justice Department for their crimes. Together with approximately $1.744 billion in regulatory penalties and disgorgement—$800 million as a result of a Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) action, $600 million as a result of a New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) action, and $344 million as a result of a U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) action—the Justice Department’s criminal penalties bring the total amount of penalties to approximately $2.519 billion.

More information on the case can be found here.

Others

Other Regulatory Bodies

$3.3 million monetary judgment assessed against payment processors

At the end of March, an Independent Sales Organization (ISO) and its principles settled Federal Trade Commission (FTC) charges that they illegally processed more than $26 million in unauthorized consumer charges. The stipulated court order settling the FTC’s charges imposes a $3.3 million monetary judgment against the ISO. Its principals will pay $150,000 and turn over personal assets totaling nearing $1.2 million. More information on the settlement can be found here.

Credit repair scam shut down

Actions taken by the FTC have resulted in the end of a credit repay scam company that allegedly used false affiliation with the FTC to market bogus credit repair services to Spanish-speaking consumers. The company has ceased operations and the defendants’ assets are frozen.

More information on the FTC request can be found here.

Statements released on compromised credentials and destructive malware

The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) released two statements concerning ways that financial institutions can identify and mitigate cyber-attacks that compromise user credentials or use destructive software, or malware. The FFIEC also provided information on what institutions can do to prepare for and respond to these threats. The OCC and FDIC have published similar bulletins.

More information can be found here.

Executive Order takes action against cybercriminals

On April 1st, the President signed an Executive Order “Blocking the Property of Certain Persons Engaging in Significant Malicious Cyber-Enabled Activities,” which enables sanctions to be imposed upon individuals and entities determined to be responsible for or complicit in malicious cyber-enabled activities.

The Order can be read here.

Phantom debts operation charged

The FTC has obtained a court order temporarily halting a fake debt collection scam located in Illinois that was allegedly using illegal threats and intimidation tactics to coerce consumers to pay payday loan debts they either did not owe, or did not owe to the defendants.

More details about the case can be found here.

Debt brokers settle charges with FTC

Two debt brokers agreed to settle FTC charges that they exposed highly sensitive information about tens of thousands of consumers while trying to sell portfolios of consumer debt on a public website. The website hosting the sensitive information was taken down, and the brokers were ordered to notify the affected consumers that their information had been exposed and of steps they could take to protect themselves.

More information on the settlement can be found here.