Wired For Compliance The Best of '97

by Richard C. Insley, CRCM

Internet years are like "dog years" - seven years' worth of developments every 12 months! What's propelling this rapid development? Money-lots of money. With the possible exception of World War II, no global project has ever attracted as much time, energy and money as the 'Net. Compliance managers continued to reap a generous share of free online goodies in 1997, including sites provided by both government and private organizations.

The regulators made steady progress in 1997. The most notable advances occurred in the examiner manual, Y2K and CRA categories. FDIC (http://www.fdic.gov) still leads the pack, but the Fed made significant improvements to a site (http://www.federalreserve.gov) that now features a "search" button - a sure sign of growth. FDIC's site now features its compliance examination manual, FIL letters and a wealth of Call Report data-useful for peer analysis. OCC improved access to an already impressive site (http://www.occ.treas.gov) and set the standard for WWW access to public CRA performance evaluation reports. OTS (http://www.ots.treas.gov) is the clear winner in the "most improved site" category and FFIEC became the undisputed HMDA resource site in 1997.

The FFIEC geocoding system at http://www.ffiec.gov/geocode/default.htm gets a "cool link" rating from HMDA enthusiasts everywhere! Another "cool link" goes to the Fed for its National Information Center (http://www.ffiec.gov/nic) where you can trace the history of bank acquisitions and find "who ate whom." Even small companies started or improved compliance-related websites in 1997. At the top of an admittedly biased list is the author's site at http://www.aprsystems.com. Drop in for free information on Reg Z and help celebrate TIL's 30th anniversary in 1998!

What else to look for in 1998? Plan on bigger and better websites at government agencies (and a newer faster modem to gather the freebies efficiently). Banking publishers will expand electronic delivery options, reducing delivery times and possibly prices. Expect e-training products to debut. Vendors of all types will offer online product descriptions and electronic "shopping carts." Those who sell software will deliver it online. You will spend more time online than you did in 1997 so budget for a powerful new PC with a 17" monitor. First >
New Year's e-resolutions
I will pick out a new, fire-breathing PC and convince the boss it's vital
I will change Internet access providers the second time I get a busy signal or am disconnected.
I will learn more about my regulator's site than my examiners know
I will learn as much about my bank's site as our webmaster knows
I will improve my ability to use search engines effectively
I will build a folder of bookmarks (favorites) for compliance resources and vendors
I will use e-mail regularly and check my mailbox at least daily
I will subscribe to ComplianceAction so I can stay one step ahead of trouble!


Copyright © 1997 Compliance Action. Originally appeared in Compliance Action, Vol. 2, No. 18, 12/97