Fintechs Push to Ease Regulatory Data Sharing Rules
Proposed rule changes would reduce friction for banks and fintech partners during due diligence and M&A evaluations.
Updated on Oct. 15, 2026 in Financial Services
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The American Fintech Council has filed comments with the OCC and FDIC advocating for broader sharing of confidential supervisory information between banks and fintech partners. The proposed rules would ease restrictions on information exchange during due diligence, potential mergers, and leadership vetting.
Why it matters
Current restrictions on sharing supervisory data create operational friction during pre-partnership due diligence and M&A evaluations. Regulators are reconsidering these rules to modernize oversight following instability in the banking-as-a-service sector.
The American Fintech Council is pushing for reforms across three specific policy fronts to facilitate data sharing. These changes would impact the majority of bank-fintech partnership frameworks currently operating under OCC and FDIC charters.
The players
American Fintech Council
An industry trade association representing firms involved in digital financial services and banking partnerships.
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
A federal bureau within the Department of the Treasury that charters, regulates, and supervises national banks.
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
An independent federal agency that maintains stability and public confidence in the financial system by insuring bank deposits.
The details
The proposal aims to replace cumbersome, standalone approval processes by allowing firms to embed confidentiality provisions directly into commercial agreements. By formalizing these protections, the Council argues that institutions can safely share necessary context during pre-engagement assessments and third-party relationship lifecycles. The industry group explicitly opposes domestic incorporation mandates and transaction-level disclosures as part of this framework.
Timeline
January 2026: The American Fintech Council submitted initial joint advocacy to federal regulators.
October 2026: The organization filed current comment letters with the OCC and FDIC.
Market Landscape
Regulators are currently reassessing the banking-as-a-service regulatory oversight framework following high-profile industry failures. This proposal seeks to formalize information exchange as a standard operational step rather than an exception.
Operators in the banking-as-a-service space should audit their current commercial agreements for potential integration of confidentiality provisions. Legal counsel should track upcoming OCC and FDIC rule-making as these changes may soon standardize due diligence workflows.
The takeaway
The proposed rules aim to reduce friction in the partnership lifecycle by shifting from ad-hoc disclosures to contractual confidentiality standards. Operators should monitor the progress of these comments as they will likely dictate the future requirements for third-party relationship documentation.
Further reading
For more on industry regulatory trends, see the latest updates in Financial Services.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Fintech Times.
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