Fiduciary Activities of National Banks

Employees at national banks often carry out actions on behalf of clients, investors, financial consumers, businesses, and other parties. In many of these cases, employees have a fiduciary duty to act in the best interest of the party they are serving.

There are many levels of fiduciary responsibility in the financial services sector, and an employee's duty depends on what their job involves. A fiduciary that fails to fulfill their fiduciary duty could be subject to administrative, regulatory, and criminal sanctions, or civil action by principals who were harmed by the fiduciary's failure – avoiding these consequences can be ensured by going through proper fiduciary training.

It is important that employees recognize what fiduciary duties apply to their role and their bank, and the steps they can take to carry out those duties. Employees who partake in proper fiduciary training courses will be able to assist their bank in putting customers first, satisfying applicable laws and regulations, and avoiding legal, regulatory and reputational damage.

The topics covered in the course include:

• Overview of fiduciary duty
• Fiduciaries and financial services
• Regulation of fiduciary duties
• The OCC
• Scope of 12 C.F.R. Part 9
• Policies and procedures
• Fiduciary accounts
• Recordkeeping
• Fiduciary audit requirements
• Investment of fiduciary funds
• Self-dealing and conflicts of interest
• Managing fiduciary assets
• Considerations for directors
• Considerations for investment advisors
• Considerations for employees