The OCC is looking to launch nationally-applicable charters for payments companies this fall. The news was confirmed by Brian Brooks, Acting Comptroller of the Currency, in a recent interview with the ABA Banking Journal. Brooks argued that a national payments charter keeps pace with consumer behavior and eliminates the need for fintechs to seek state-level money transmission licenses.  

Why should we care?
The payments charter represents an evolution of thinking among regulators and could help payments companies grow faster. Fintechs will likely see it as an enabler for competition, but if pushback to the OCC national fintech charter is any indication, states are likely to challenge the national payments charter as an overreach of the OCC. The first version of the payments charter would be a national version of a state money transmission license, while 18 months down the road, a “payments charter 2.0” would allow access to the Federal Reserve payment system, Brooks said.