meta_id 3370041

On July 31, 2026, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, and the National Credit Union Administration issued a joint statement of enforcement policy supporting U.S. government efforts to facilitate humanitarian relief and promote financial stability following earthquakes that struck Venezuela on June 24, 2026. The joint statement provides that eligible U.S. financial institutions providing authorized financial services to persons or entities in Venezuela will not be subject to supervisory action, violation citations, or enforcement action by the agencies related to Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) requirements. The commitment applies to authorized financial services provided from July 31, 2026, through January 29, 2027. The agencies recognised that regulatory uncertainty can impair the timely provision of humanitarian aid and committed to support institutions exercising reasonable care to avoid BSA violations in support of Venezuela's economic recovery and earthquake relief efforts. To rely on this enforcement policy commitment, OCC-supervised institutions must currently comply with applicable BSA compliance program requirements; continue engaging in reasonable efforts to comply with applicable BSA requirements, taking into account the government's interests in rapidly providing humanitarian relief; have not been subject to a final enforcement action involving BSA violations by FinCEN or the OCC within the prior 24 months; and remain compliant with applicable Office of Foreign Assets Control-administered sanctions regulations and authorizations. The joint statement recognises that financial institutions are not penalized for actions other than knowing, willful, or intentional violations of BSA requirements. The policy reinforces a substantively similar statement issued by the Department of Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) on July 27, 2026. REFERENCES: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, "OCC Bulletin 2026-36: Notification: Statement of Enforcement Policy in Support of Venezuela's Economic Recovery and Earthquake Relief Efforts," July 31, 2026, https://www.occ.gov/news-issuances/bulletins/2026/bulletin-2026-36.html