Banking and Finance Law Daily Wrap Up, COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT—OCC’s Gould touts community bank ‘comeback,’ military bank proposal, (Sep 29, 2026)

By Carrie DeLeon

Gould estimated that recent agency actions freed $64 billion in capital for deployment in communities and highlighted additional areas of regulatory and supervisory change.

Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould, speaking this week during the Association of Military Banks of America’s Military Banking Summit 2026, said the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) will continue reducing regulatory burdens and tailoring supervision for community banks under its “Community Bank Comeback” policy.

“The Community Bank Comeback is about restoring the conditions that allow community banks to succeed. It is about recognizing that sound supervision and a healthy banking system are not objectives that can be achieved by subjecting all banks to the same standards,” Gould said.

Allowing community banks to put capital and other resources to productive use reaches the families, small businesses, and communities that depend on them, Gould further noted.

“When community banks are able to put their capital and resources to productive use, the benefits extend well beyond the institutions themselves. They reach the families, small businesses, and communities that depend on them. That is what the Community Bank Comeback is ultimately about,” Gould said.

Gould framed tailored oversight as necessary to both sound supervision and a healthy banking system. Pointing to the range of OCC-supervised institutions—the largest is 100,000 times the size of the smallest, he said—Gould argued that applying the same standards to every bank would not achieve those goals. He also cited the industry’s contraction, saying more than half of community banks have closed or been absorbed through mergers and acquisitions since 2008.

Gould said community bank policy must include institutions committed to military communities, whose customers may face permanent changes of station, home purchases, or transitions from military to civilian life.

Gould also mentioned the proposed military-bank definition as a pending Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) reform item. He said the definition is intended to provide transparency and clarity for military banking institutions. Gould presented the proposal alongside the agency’s broader work to reduce burdens and tailor community-bank supervision.

He encouraged military banks to provide feedback on the definition. The OCC is seeking their views on what is working, where unnecessary obstacles remain, and how its rules can better recognize the role military banks play in their communities.

“We recognize that your banks are the lifeblood of the Main Street economy. You are responsible for providing small businesses and hardworking families across the country with the financial services they need to access the world’s greatest economy. And we are committed to making it easier for you to do exactly that,” Gould said.

RegulatoryActivity: BankingOperations CommunityDevelopment PrudentialRegulation