Interpretations and Actions: January 2006

Vol. 19, No. 1

Interpretive Letters

Letter No.	Topic
1046	National bank may make an equity investment in a LLC that will fund venture capital investments in small businesses. 12/14/2005
1047	Letter concludes that a national trust company may sponsor a closed-end investment fund that will be exempt from registration under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Letter also concludes that because the fund's underlying portfolio consists of bank eligible investments, the particular types of national banks proposed may purchase the described fund shares pursuant to 12 CFR 1.3(h)(2), subject to specific safe and sound banking practices and a 1% aggregate investment limitation. 12/20/2005
1048	National bank may extend credit to wind energy project and hold an indirect interest in real estate held by the project by acquiring an interest in the LLC that owns the project. The proposed structure facilitates the provision of financing by permitting the bank to receive federal tax credits and reducing the cost of financing. 12/21/2005
1048a	Letter restating the restrictions and limitations associated with a transaction involving a wind energy project discussed in OCC Interpretive Letter 1048. 03/03/2006
1049	Letter determines the appropriate credit conversion factor and risk weights to apply to a multipurpose loan commitment. 01/17/2006

CRA Decisions

Letter No.	Topic
130	Application to merge City National Bank and Trust, Gloversville, New York, with and into NBT Bank, National Association, Norwich, New York under the title and charter number of the latter. (Control Number 2005 NE 02 0023), 12/15/2005
131	Application to merge Hudson United Bank, Mahwah, New Jersey, with and into TD Banknorth, National Association, Portland, Maine under the charter and title of the latter. (Control Number 2005 NE 02 032), 12/22/2005

Corporate Decisions

Letter No.	Topic
2006-01	Change in Bank Control Act Notice submitted by Bippy Siegal to acquire control of Excel Bank, National Association, New York, New York. (Control Number 2005 NE 11 0002), 11/22/2005
2006-02	Notice of Change in Bank Control involving The Private Trust Company, National Association, Cleveland, Ohio. (Control Number 2005 CE 11 001), 12/27/2005

Approvals with Conditions Enforceable under 12 U.S.C. 1818

Letter No.	Topic
718	Application to merge New York National Bank, Bronx, New York, with and into NYNB Bank, National Association (in organization), Yonkers, New York under the charter of the latter and the title of "New York National Bank II," Yonkers, New York. (Control Number 2005 NE 02 0016), 12/05/2005
719	Proposal by Countrywide Bank, National Association to increase its capital surplus. (Control Number 2005 WE 12 0306), 12/05/2005
720	Application to establish a new national bank with the title of "Sonoran Bank, National Association," Phoenix, Arizona. (Control Number 2005 WE 01 0010), 12/13/2005
721	Application to establish a new national bank with the title of "Harbor National Bank," Charleston, South Carolina. (Control Number 2005 SO 01 0017), 12/13/2005
722	Application to establish a new national bank with the title of "First Fidelity Bank, National Association," Phoenix, Arizona. (Control Number 2005 SO 01 0025), 12/14/2005
723	Application to establish a new national bank with the title of "First National Bank of Michigan," Kalamazoo, Michigan. (Control Number 2005 CE 01 005), 12/16/2005
724	Application by Wachovia Bank, National Association, Charlotte, North Carolina to establish an operating subsidiary with the title of "Structured Principal Strategies, LLC" to engage in certain permissible activities. (Control Number 2005 ML 08 0010), 12/16/2005
725	Application to establish a new national bank with the title of "Northern California National Bank," Chico, California, and to establish a branch messenger service. (Control Numbers 2005 WE 01 0011 & 2005 WE 05 0121), 12/20/2005
726	Application by Wells Fargo Bank, National Association to hold two entities as operating subsidiaries. (Control Number 2004 ML 08 0011), 12/21/2005

Final Enforcement Actions

Enclosed is a copy of the OCC's news release number 2006-5, announcing the availability of enforcement actions. Copies of the final actions are available by writing to the OCC, Public Reference Room, Mailstop 1-5, Washington, D.C. 20219. When ordering, specify the appropriate enforcement action number.

Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) Performance Evaluations

Enclosed is a list of CRA performance evaluations that became public during the period of December 15, 2005 through January 14, 2006.

PLEASE NOTE: Interpretive Letters and No-Objection Letters reflect the views of the Comptroller's legal staff. Corporate Decisions, CRA Decisions and Conditional Approvals are from the office of Licensing. The Community Development Investment Letters are from the office of Community Affairs. The list of CRA Ratings is from the Communications Division. For copies of the CRA evaluations, you may either contact the bank directly, or you may write to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) in any of three ways: by mail to the OCC, Attn: Public Information Room, Mail Stop 1-5, Washington, D.C. 20219; by fax to (202) 874-4448; or by email to FOIA-PA@occ.treas.gov. You may also write to the OCC for copies of enforcement actions and charters with standard conditions.

Members of the news media are encouraged to cite the letter number when reporting or summarizing documents from this package. This helps us to process single requests based upon your citation in a more timely manner.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency publishes INTERPRETATIONS AND ACTIONS monthly. Subscriptions are available at a rate of $175 per year by writing to the Comptroller of the Currency, ATTN: Accounts Receivable, Mail Stop 4-8, 250 E Street, S.W., Washington, DC 20219. Prepayment is requested. Suggestions, comments or questions may be sent to Jacqueline J. England, Comptroller of the Currency, Communications Division, Mail Stop 3-2, Washington, DC 20219.