HR 4926 EH
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Treatment
in Banking Act of 1994’’.
SEC. 2. FAILURE TO ACCORD NATIONAL TREATMENT TO
UNITED STATES BANKING ORGANIZATIONS.
(a) IDENTIFYING COUNTRIES THAT MAY BE DENY-
ING NATIONAL TREATMENT TO UNITED STATES BANK-
ING ORGANIZATIONS.—The Secretary of the Treasury
shall identify, after consultation with the Federal banking
agencies, the extent to which foreign countries may be de-
nying national treatment to United States banking organi-
zations—
(1) based on information relating to banking in
the most recent report under section 3602 of the
Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988
(or the most recent update of such report); or
(2) based on more recent information that the
Secretary considers appropriate.
(b) ASSESSING WHETHER POSSIBLE DENIAL OF NA-
TIONAL TREATMENT MAY BE HAVING A SIGNIFICANT
ADVERSE EFFECT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall assess,
after consultation with the Federal banking agen-
cies, whether the possible denial of national treat-
ment to United States banking organizations by a
foreign country identified under subsection (a) may
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be having a significant adverse effect on such orga-
nizations.
(2) FACTORS TO BE CONSIDERED.—In making
any assessment under paragraph (1), the Secretary
shall consider appropriate factors, including the fol-
lowing:
(A) The extent of United States trade with
and investment in the foreign country, the size
of the foreign country’s markets for banking
services, and the extent to which United States
banking organizations operate or seek to oper-
ate in those markets.
(B) The importance of operations by
United States banking organizations in the for-
eign country to the export of goods and services
by United States firms to such country.
(C) The extent to which the foreign coun-
try provides in advance to United States bank-
ing organizations a written draft of any
measure of general application that the country
proposes to adopt, such as regulations, guide-
lines, or other policies regarding new products
and services, in order to allow an opportunity
for such organizations to comment on the meas-
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ure and for such comments to be taken into ac-
count by the foreign country.
(D) The extent to which the foreign coun-
try—
(i) makes available, in writing, to
United States banking organizations the
foreign country’s requirements for complet-
ing any application relating to the provi-
sion of financial services by any such orga-
nization;
(ii) applies published, objective stand-
ards and criteria in evaluating any such
application from any United States bank-
ing organization; and
(iii) renders administrative decisions
relating to any such application within a
reasonable period of time.
(3) 
SOLICITATION
OF
COMMENTS.—Before
making any assessment under paragraph (1), the
Secretary may solicit comments concerning the ef-
fect of the possible denial of national treatment on
United States banking organizations from interested
parties.
(c) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary may publish a no-
tice in the Federal Register of—
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(1) any assessment made under subsection
(b)(1) with respect to any country; and
(2) any change made with respect to any as-
sessment under such subsection which was pre-
viously published in the Federal Register.
(d) DEFINITIONS.—The following definitions shall
apply for purposes of this section:
(1) BANKING ORGANIZATION.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘banking or-
ganization’’ means any bank, any bank holding
company (including any company required to
file reports pursuant to section 4(f)(6) of the
Bank Holding Company Act of 1956), and any
savings and loan holding company (as such
term is defined in section 10(a)(1)(D) of the
Home Owners’ Loan Act).
(B) BANKING
TERMS.—For purposes of
this paragraph, the terms ‘‘bank’’ and ‘‘bank
holding company’’ have the same meaning as in
section 2 of the Bank Holding Company Act of
1956.
(2) FEDERAL BANKING AGENCIES.—The term
‘‘Federal banking agencies’’ has the same meaning
as in section 3(z) of the Federal Deposit Insurance
Act.
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(3) NATIONAL
TREATMENT.—The term ‘‘na-
tional treatment’’ means, with respect to any foreign
country, treatment that offers United States bank-
ing organizations the same competitive opportunities
(including effective market access) in such country
as are available to the foreign country’s domestic
banking organizations in like circumstances.
(4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
the Secretary of the Treasury.
SEC. 3. APPLICATIONS BY FOREIGN BANKS AND OTHER
PERSONS OF A FOREIGN COUNTRY.
(a) APPLICATIONS
UNDER
THE
INTERNATIONAL
BANKING ACT
OF 1978.—Section 7(d) of the Inter-
national Banking Act of 1978 (12 U.S.C. 3105(d)) is
amended by adding at the end the following new para-
graph:
‘‘(6) ADDITIONAL
STANDARD.—In acting on
any application under paragraph (1), the Board
shall take into account whether the Secretary of the
Treasury has published a notice, in accordance with
section 2(c) of the National Treatment in Banking
Act of 1994, that the possible denial of national
treatment to United States banking organizations by
the foreign bank’s home country identified under
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section 2(a) of such Act may be having a significant
adverse effect on such organizations.’’.
(b) APPLICATIONS UNDER
THE BANK HOLDING
COMPANY ACT OF 1956.—Section 5 of the Bank Holding
Company Act of 1956 (12 U.S.C. 1844) is amended by
adding at the end the following new subsection:
‘‘(g) APPLICATIONS BY A FOREIGN BANK.—In con-
sidering any application or notice under section 3 or 4 by
any foreign bank (as defined in section 1(b) of the Inter-
national Banking Act of 1978), the Board shall take into
account whether the Secretary of the Treasury has pub-
lished a notice, in accordance with section 2(c) of the Na-
tional Treatment in Banking Act of 1994, that the pos-
sible denial of national treatment to United States bank-
ing organizations by the foreign bank’s home country
identified under section 2(a) of such Act may be having
a significant adverse effect on such organizations.’’.
(c) AMENDMENT TO CHANGE IN BANK CONTROL
ACT.—Section 7(j) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act
(12 U.S.C. 1817(j)) is amended by adding at the end the
following new paragraph:
‘‘(19) NOTICE
BY
A
PERSON
OF
A
FOREIGN
COUNTRY.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In considering a no-
tice under this subsection by a person of a for-
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eign country, the appropriate Federal banking
agency shall take into account whether the Sec-
retary of the Treasury has published a notice,
in accordance with section 2(c) of the National
Treatment in Banking Act of 1994, that the
possible denial of national treatment to United
States banking organizations by such person’s
home country identified under section 2(a) of
such Act may be having a significant adverse
effect on such organizations.
‘‘(B) PERSON OF A FOREIGN COUNTRY DE-
FINED.—For purposes of this paragraph, the
term ‘person of a foreign country’ means—
‘‘(i) any entity that—
‘‘(I) is organized under the laws
of the foreign country, or
‘‘(II) has the entity’s principal
place of business in the foreign coun-
try;
‘‘(ii) an individual who—
‘‘(I) is a citizen of the foreign
country, or
‘‘(II) is domiciled in the foreign
country; and
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‘‘(iii) any person that is, directly or
indirectly, under the control of any entity
or individual described in clause (i) or
(ii).’’.
(d) AMENDMENT TO NATIONAL BANK ACT.—Section
5155 of the Revised Statutes (12 U.S.C. 36) is amended
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
‘‘(i) APPLICATION BY A BANK WHICH IS A PERSON
OF A FOREIGN COUNTRY.—In considering any application
under this section by any bank which is a person of a for-
eign country (as defined in section 7(j)(19)(B) of the Fed-
eral Deposit Insurance Act), the Comptroller of the Cur-
rency shall take into account whether the Secretary of the
Treasury has published a notice, in accordance with sec-
tion 2(c) of the National Treatment in Banking Act of
1994, that the possible denial of national treatment to
United States banking organizations by such person’s
home country identified under section 2(a) of such Act
may be having a significant adverse effect on such organi-
zations.’’.
(e) AMENDMENT TO FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE
ACT.—Section 18(c) of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act
(12 U.S.C. 1828(c)) is amended by adding at the end the
following new paragraph:
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‘‘(12) APPLICATION BY A BANK WHICH IS A
PERSON OF A FOREIGN COUNTRY.—In considering
any merger transaction under this subsection involv-
ing any bank which is a person of a foreign country
(as defined in section 7(j)(19)(B)), the responsible
agency shall take into account whether the Secretary
of the Treasury has published a notice, in accord-
ance with section 2(c) of the National Treatment in
Banking Act of 1994, that the possible denial of na-
tional treatment to United States banking organiza-
tions by such person’s home country identified under
section 2(a) of such Act may be having a significant
adverse effect on such organizations.’’.
(f) AMENDMENT TO FEDERAL RESERVE ACT.—The
3d undesignated paragraph of section 9 of the Federal Re-
serve Act (12 U.S.C. 321) is amended in the proviso by
inserting ‘‘, including section 5155(i) of the Revised Stat-
utes,’’ after ‘‘limitations and restrictions’’.
SEC. 4. CONSISTENCY WITH BILATERAL AND MULTILAT-
ERAL AGREEMENTS.
No authority under this Act or any amendment made
by this Act to any other law may be used to take any
action with respect to a foreign country which is inconsist-
ent with any bilateral or multilateral agreement that gov-
erns financial services in which such country is obligated
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to provide national treatment for United States banking
organizations.
Passed the House of Representatives September 30,
1994.
Attest:
Clerk.
103D CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4926
AN ACT
To require the Secretary of the Treasury to identify
foreign countries which may be denying national
treatment to United States banking organiza-
tions and to assess whether any such denial may
be having a significant adverse effect on such or-
ganizations, and to require Federal banking
agencies to take such assessments into account in
considering certain applications and notices by
foreign banks and other persons of a foreign
country.