OCC Staffing Shortage Tests Rigor of Bank Charter Approvals

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OCC is redeploying bank examiners to help handle a surge in bank charter applications. Its workforce is down by more than 30% from before the Trump administration’s staffing cuts, but no examinations have been canceled or delayed as a result so far. From early 2025 through the end of October, OCC received applications from at least 50 institutions, compared with 1 in 2024 and 5 in 2023; the reassignment of examiners has also made staffing gaps in supervisory teams more apparent.