(a) The Board of Governors was asked recently whether the establishment of a proposed “Commingled Investment Account” (“Account”) by a national bank would involve a violation of section 32 of the Banking Act of 1933 in view of the interlocking relationships that would exist between the bank and Account.
(b) From the information submitted, it was understood that Account would comprise a commingled fund, to be operated under the effective control of the bank, for the collective investment of sums of money that might otherwise be handled individually by the bank as managing agent. It was understood further that the Comptroller of the Currency had taken the position that Account would be an eligible operation for a national bank under his Regulation 9, “Fiduciary Powers of National Banks and Collective Investment Funds” (part 9 of this title). The bank had advised the Board that the Securities and Exchange Commission was of the view that Account would be a “registered investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act of 1940, and that participating interests in Account would be “securities” subject to the registration requirements of the Securities Act of 1933.
(c) The information submitted showed also that the minimum individual participation that would be permitted in Account would be $10,000, while the maximum acceptable individual investment would be half a million dollars; that there would be no “load” or payment by customers for the privilege of investing in Account; and that:
The availability of the Commingled Account would not be given publicity by the Bank except in connection with the promotion of its fiduciary services in general and the Bank would not advertise or publicize the Commingled Account as such. Participations in the Commingled Account are to be made available only on the premises of the Bank (including its branches), or to persons who are already customers of the Bank in other connections, or in response to unsolicited requests.
(d) Such information indicated further that participations would be received by the bank as agent, under a broad authorization signed by the customer, substantially equivalent to the power of attorney under which customers currently deposit their funds for individual investment, and that the participations would not be received “in trust.”
(e) The Board understood that Account would be required to comply with certain requirements of the Federal securities laws not applicable to an ordinary common trust fund operated by a bank. In particular, supervision of Account would be in the hands of a committee to be initially appointed by the bank, but subsequently elected by participants having a majority of the units of participation in Account. At least one member of the committee would be entirely independent of the bank, but the remaining members would be officers in the trust department of the bank.
(f) The committee would make a management agreement with the bank under which the bank would be responsible for managing Account's investments, have custody of its assets, and maintain its books and records. The management agreement would be renewed annually if approved by the committee, including a “majority” of the independent members, or by a vote of participants having a majority of the units of participation. The agreement would be terminable on 60 days' notice by the committee, by such a majority of the participants, or by the bank, and would terminate automatically if assigned by the bank.
(g) It was understood also that the bank would receive as annual compensation for its services one-half of one percent of Account's average net assets. Account would also pay for its own independent professional services, including legal, auditing, and accounting services, as well as the cost of maintaining its registration and qualification under the Federal securities laws.
(h) Initially, the assets of Account would be divided into units of participation of an arbitrary value, and each customer would be credited with a number of units proportionate to his investment. Subsequently, the assets of Account would be valued at regular intervals, and divided by the number of units outstanding. New investors would receive units at their current value, determined in this way, according to the amount invested. Each customer would receive a receipt evidencing the number of units to which he was entitled. The receipts themselves would be nontransferable, but it would be possible for a customer to arrange with Account for the transfer of his units to someone else. A customer could terminate his participation at any time and withdraw the current value of his units.
(i) Section 32 of the Banking Act of 1933 provides in relevant part that:
No officer, director, or employee of any corporation or unincorporated association, no partner or employee of any partnership, and no individual, primarily engaged in the issue, flotation, underwriting, public sale, or distribution, at wholesale or retail, or through syndicate participation, of stocks, bonds, or other similar securities, shall serve [at] the same time as an officer, director, or employee of any member bank * * *.
(j) The Board concluded, based on its understanding of the proposal and on the general principles that have been developed in respect to the application of section 32, that the bank and Account would constitute a single entity for the purposes of section 32, at least so long as the operation of Account conformed to the representations made by the bank and outlined herein. Accordingly, the Board said that section 32 would not forbid officers of the bank to serve on Account's committee, since Account would be regarded as nothing more than an arm or department of the bank.
(k) In conclusion, the Board called attention to section 21 of the Banking Act of 1933 which, briefly, forbids a securities firm or organization to engage in the business of receiving deposits, subject to certain exceptions. However, since section 21 is a criminal statute, the Board has followed the policy of not expressing views as to its meaning. (1934 Federal Reserve Bulletin 41, 543.) The Board, therefore, expressed no position with respect to whether the section might be held applicable to the establishment and operation of the proposed “Commingled Investment Account.”
[30 FR 12836, Oct. 8, 1965. Redesignated at 61 FR 57289, Nov. 6, 1996]
Tried the LawStack mobile app?
Join thousands and try LawStack mobile for FREE today.
- Carry the law offline, wherever you go.
- Download CFR, USC, rules, and state law to your mobile device.
