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An official website of the United States government

What We Do

The OCC ensures that national banks and federal savings associations operate in a safe and sound manner, provide fair access to financial services, treat customers fairly, and comply with applicable laws and regulations.

We Supervise & Examine

  • The OCC provides high-quality, fair, and balanced supervision to its chartered banks.
  • Our well-trained examiners conduct on-site reviews of banks and provide ongoing supervision of the banks' operations.
  • Examiners meet with bank management and the bank's board of directors throughout the supervisory cycle to obtain information or discuss issues.
  • The "Bank Supervision Process" booklet of the Comptroller's Handbook describes our risk-based approach to bank examinations and details virtually all aspects of bank supervision.

We Regulate & Enforce

  • The OCC is the primary regulator of banks chartered under the National Bank Act and federal savings associations chartered under the Home Owners' Loan Act.
  • The OCC issues rules and regulations that govern the banks it supervises.
  • The agency takes supervisory actions against banks that do not comply with these statutes or that otherwise engage in risky practices.
  • The "Supervisory Actions" section of the "Bank Supervision Process" booklet of the Comptroller's Handbook outlines the actions that the OCC may take.

We Charter & License

  • Financial institutions follow an in-depth application process to be chartered as an OCC-supervised bank.
  • Chartered banks apply to the OCC to make substantial changes to their activities or structure.
  • The OCC evaluates the applications to make sure banks' corporate structures are established and maintained in accordance with the principles of a safe and sound banking system.
  • Our licensing department works closely with the agency's supervisory and legal divisions to render independent decisions regarding applications.

We Protect Consumers & Communities

  • Ensuring fair access and equal treatment to bank customers is a fundamental part of the OCC's mission.
  • The OCC helps banks be leaders in safe and sound community development financing and making financial services accessible to underserved communities and consumers.
  • OCC examiners make sure banks comply with consumer banking laws.
  • The OCC operates HelpWithMyBank, a website that assists bank customers with common banking questions and lets them file complaints against a national bank or federal savings association.