Does anyone have any experience with the sharing information with other banks piece of the USA PATRIOT Act (314(b))? After filing the form with FinCEN, have you been overwhelmed? Have you had some activity? That sort of thing. After the Information Requests from FinCEN, we're wrestling with the 314(b) decision. The last thing we need is something else that will overload us.

Thanks for the input.

The only experience I have had with information sharing is a situation where one of my banks was asked to provide information, anticipated providing the information and did file for information sharing. The other party, however when prodded for their position regarding the information sharing, never got back to the bank. It was felt at the time that if the information was to be provided, the safe harbor provision was needed. That was well over six months ago and there has not been any other requests to provide information.

Has anyone found the list with FinCEN showing which banks/FIs have signed up for information sharing? I thought I had read somewhere that over 1,000 banks had signed up to share. I have searched their website today, and haven't been able to find any information showing who out there has registered to "Share" information under 314(b). Does anyone know if they have even put an official list together?

Any help is greatly appreciated!
Julie

I recently attempted to contact a large northeastern bank concerning what appeared to be a mutual client. I called for two weeks trying to find anyone in BSA, Security, AML.... so I could see if they had filed the form and see if we could share some info. I gave up. I couldn't get there from here.

Jules, I am pretty sure that Treasury suspended the information sharing. However FDIC FIL-135-2002 issued December 10, 2002 details the final rule regarding section 314. There is no mention of a list of FIs that share. You can find a copy of this FIL on www.fdic.gov or you may have received a copy.

A Treasury representative speaking at the ABA Money Laundering Enforcement seminar in October indicated more that 1,000 banks had registered and that they expected to publish the list after the first of the year.

As noted, the registration is voluntary. It must also be renewed annually. As the instances where sharing is allowed must involve terrorism or money laundering, it's difficult for me to see the value to banks who are more likely going to want to talk to another bank about kiting or some other type of multi-bank fraud.

If presented with a situation where they want to share on an appropriate fact situation, banks can register instantaneously via the FinCEN web site. In short, I do not see the incentive for advance registration and the acceptance of a responsiblity to renew annually. (We'll see if the examiners pressure institutions to register "just because they should.")

Personal opinion only: I think the most likely use of this system will actually be prompted by law enforcement requests. For example, if a bank files a SAR on money laundering which mentions another bank and Treasury is interested, they will "suggest" that the two banks register and share information in order to show law enforcement the big picture.

Thanks for the feedback! I do have a potential ML situation that I would love to be able to share with the corresponding financial institutions - but then I would also need to be bilingual. Unfortunately, I took French in high school, so that wouldn't help me out now.

I work for a holding company of several banks. We want to coordinate and respond to any requests we receive from the holding company level for each of the banks.

After reading the information from FinCEN regarding the 314(a), it is my opinion that for us to respond for all the banks we have to register for the 314(b).

Is that an accurate interpretation? Thanks for clarifying.

I would like to resurrect this, as I am in the same situation as the last poster. When I file as an "association of financial institutions" from the bank holding company level, I assume all of our banks are included under a "blanket certification." Is this correct?

Will all of our individual banks be listed on this list of "participants" referred to above or just the holding company name?

Thanks!!