OCC Receives 40 New Bank Applications in 18 Months

The heads of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) will continue working to encourage new bank formation, they said in separate statements.

The FDIC has implemented a new review process for deposit insurance applications, with new procedures designed to encourage new bank formation, accelerate the review process and improve the efficiency of the application process, the regulator said in a Monday (Aug. 10) press release.

The regulator’s new two-phase approach includes providing de novo applicants who satisfy relevant requirements a contingent authorization within 120 days of receiving the application and approval within the following 12 months, according to the release.

“Improving the de novo process and encouraging more new bank formation has been a key priority for the FDIC,” FDIC Chairman Travis Hill said in the release. “Today’s action is one of several steps the FDIC has been working on in furtherance of this goal. A healthy pipeline of new entrants is critical to the long-term vitality of the banking sector, particularly for community banks.”

The OCC said in a Tuesday (Aug. 11) press release that it commends the FDIC’s changes and that the OCC will continue its own efforts to reinvigorate de novo chartering.

Amid the priority it has placed on this project, the OCC has received 40 de novo applications in the last 18 months. According to a de novo bank charters fact sheet issued along with the press release, the OCC received 48 applications in the previous 14 years, from 2011 through 2024. During three of those years, the regulator received no applications.

In many cases over the last 18 months, the OCC has made decisions on charter applications within 120 days of receipt, per the release.

“De novo chartering is a sign of a healthy banking system,” Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan V. Gould said in the release. “The FDIC’s new process to review deposit insurance applications aligns with the OCC’s efforts to reverse the decline in de novo chartering by providing a clear and transparent application process that encourages new entrants to the banking system — which drive innovation and expand consumer choice.”

PYMNTS reported in May 2025 that regulator had been moving to ease the bank application process after several years in which de novo activity had been muted.

In February, PYMNTS reported that across FinTech, commerce and manufacturing, firms are increasingly pursuing industrial loan company (ILC) charters, a subset of de novo activity, as a way to stand up new banks from scratch.