WASHINGTON–The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) said it will host a series of virtual “office hours” to hear directly from a range of stakeholders regarding current and evolving technological innovations in the business of banking.
Hosted by the FDIC’s tech lab, FDiTech, and FDIC Chief Innovation Officer Sultan Meghji, the agency said the hour-long, one-on-one sessions will provide insight into the important role innovation plays in transforming banks and enabling regulators to conduct efficient and effective oversight.
“Thoughtful innovation requires listening,” said FDIC Chief Innovation Officer Sultan Meghji. “These virtual office hours will provide another direct avenue for the FDIC to hear from those on the front lines of financial innovation about how we can build a more inclusive and resilient banking ecosystem.”
The Objectives
According to the FDIC, FDiTech seeks to:
• Evaluate and promote the adoption of innovative and transformative technologies in the financial services sector
• To improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and stability of U.S. banking operations, services, and products
• To support access to financial institutions, products, and services
• To better serve consumers. FDiTech’s mission is to help accelerate transformation of banking by encouraging the adoption of technological innovations through increased collaboration with market participants
In the first series of these Office Hour meetings, the FDIC and FDiTech said they are particularly interested in the attendees’ input and views on artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) involving:
• Automation of back office processes
• Bank Secrecy Act/Anti-Money Laundering (BSA/AML) compliance
• Credit underwriting decisions (especially removing potential bias)
• Cybersecurity
High Demand Anticipated
While FDiTech anticipates a high demand for these Office Hours, there will be a limited number of available meetings, the FDIC said. “Specifically, FDiTech anticipates hosting approximately 15 one-hour sessions each quarter.”
Interested parties wishing to participate in these sessions should email a simple expression of interest to innovation@fdic.gov no later than May 24, 2021. In response, FDiTech will ask stakeholders to provide additional information no later than Friday, May 28, 2021.
The FDIC said it will use this information to schedule these limited one-on-one sessions during the week of June 14, 2021. The FDIC added FDiTech will host additional Office Hours later in the year.