Company: ASB
Filing Date: 2025-02-12
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0000007789-25-000013
Chunk: 136

Company: ASSOCIATED BANC-CORP
Filing Date: 2025-02-12
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1
Chunk 136
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 plan to demonstrate efforts to come into compliance with such Guidelines. Failure to provide and implement a plan requires the appropriate federal banking agency to issue an order to the institution requiring compliance.

Corporate and Risk Governance

We are required as a supervisory matter to implement an effective corporate and risk governance framework commensurate with our size, complexity and risk profile. Fundamental components of this framework include the authorities and responsibilities of directors and senior managers to govern the operations and structure of the Corporation and the Bank, as well as the implementation and management of systems and processes designed to identify, measure, monitor and control the risks to the organization, specifically including strategic, reputation, compliance and operational risks. 

Corporate and risk governance oversight is a core supervisory function of the federal banking agencies, including the OCC. National banks with at least $50 billion in total assets are subject to prescribed standards for the implementation of risk governance frameworks addressing credit risk, interest rate risk, liquidity risk, price risk, operational risk, compliance risk, strategic risk, and reputation risks. Additionally, on October 11, 2023, the FDIC issued a proposed rule and guidelines that would require all FDIC-supervised IDIs with total assets of $10 billion or more to adopt heightened corporate governance and risk management standards pursuant to which covered institutions would be required to develop and implement a comprehensive and independent risk management function and effective programs for internal controls, risk management, and audits. As of December 31, 2024, the proposed rule has not been adopted. As a result of the change in the Administration and based on recent statements from Travis Hill, the new Acting Chairman of the FDIC, the proposed rule is unlikely to be adopted as proposed and the prospects and timing for a re-proposal by the FDIC are not certain at this time.

Although the Bank presently is not subject to the existing OCC risk governance standards for larger banks based on its current asset size, and the Bank, as a national bank supervised by the OCC, is not within the scope of the FDIC’s proposed rule, certain expectations set forth in existing and proposed regulatory guidelines may be imposed upon the Bank in the ordinary course of supervision and examination.  

Further, the federal banking agencies have in recent years increased their focus on banks’ third-party risk management controls and practices. The federal banking agencies, including the OCC, adopted interagency guidance on risk management of third-party relationships. The guidance applies broadly to any business agreement between a banking organization and another entity, by contract or otherwise (including affiliated entities), and it requires banking