WASHINGTON --The Office of the
Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) has outlined measures to assist national
banks and their customers affected by Hurricane Ophelia. The OCC regulates national banks.
The OCC recognizes that
the effects of natural disasters on individuals and businesses are often
temporary, and that prudent efforts to adjust or alter terms on existing loans
in areas affected by the disasters and related problems should not be subject
to bank examiner criticism.
The OCC encourages
national banks to consider various alternatives that may include:
- extending
the terms of loan repayments;
- restructuring
a borrower’s debt obligations; and,
- easing
credit terms for new loans to certain borrowers, consistent with prudent
banking practice.
The OCC notes that
these measures could help borrowers recover their financial strength and
enable them to be in a
better position to repay their debts.
These recovery efforts can contribute
to the health of the
local community and the long-term interests of the national bank and its
customers.
In addition, the OCC
has authorized national banks to close offices affected by the hurricane
temporarily.
National banks in need
of assistance in dealing with customers affected by the hurricane should
contact the OCC.
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The Office of the
Comptroller of the Currency was created by Congress to charter national banks,
to oversee a nationwide system of banking institutions, and to assure that
national banks are safe and sound, competitive and profitable, and capable of
serving in the best possible manner the banking needs of their customers.