The Consumer Bankers Association (CBA) reflected on 2021, highlighting some of the changes and successes from last year.
“In spite of continued challenges, CBA over the last year was proud to deliver on behalf of our membership, whose unyielding commitment to the communities they serve has helped fuel America’s recovery, drive our nation’s economic growth and finance the American dream for millions of hardworking families and small businesses,” CBA President and CEO Richard Hunt said.
Among the successes, Wells Fargo’s Michelle Lee was named CBA’s first female minority Board Chair, following the successful tenure of Bank of America’s Christine Channels. Also, CBA was proud to support banks’ efforts to ensure small businesses across the country could access the critical lifeline the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) provided. The program helped save an estimated 80 million jobs. The association also hosted CBA’s first-ever Washington Forum, a virtual summit bringing together 800 registrants and 14 Members of Congress, regulators, and industry experts to discuss the shift ahead for retail banking.
Further, CBA maintained 100 percent of its corporate membership and welcomed several new members, including Valley National, MidFirst Bank, Associated Bank, Berkshire Hills Bank, First United Bank & Trust, S&T Bank, Liberty Bank, and First United Bank Texas. In addition, CBA successfully advocated for the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to rescind its June 2020 Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) Rule and begin a new joint-rulemaking to modernize the CRA.
“Amidst a rapidly evolving banking industry, lingering economic headwinds, and regulatory uncertainty from policymakers in Washington, our work continues in the year ahead. From navigating changes in the workforce to protecting consumers from the risks posed by unregulated and unsupervised fintechs and emerging technologies, to further strengthening competition and innovation and promoting consumer choice, our CBA team looks forward to continuing our work together, including marking the return of retail banking’s top annual event, CBA LIVE, March 7-9 in San Antonio, Texas,” Hunt added.