NR 2001-102
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 
Contact:  Kevin Mukri  (202) 874-5770
December 13, 2001				    


OCC Offers New Guidance on Merchant Processing

WASHINGTON--The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued new guidance 
this week to help examiners and banks understand and manage the risks associated
with the merchant processing business.

The new OCC booklet communicates the agency's expectations for sound risk 
management and controls, and establishes examination procedures for merchant 
processing activities.  The "Merchant Processing" booklet emphasizes that 
merchant processing is a highly specialized and competitive business activity.  
As such, it requires specialized knowledge and experience to manage the business, 
and strong controls over strategic, credit and transaction risks.

The merchant processing guide should be used in conjunction with other OCC 
publications, including the "Community Bank Supervision Handbook" dated 
August 2001, the "Internal Control Handbook" dated January 2001, and OCC 
Bulletin 2001-47 covering "Third Party Relationships," dated November 1, 2001.

The booklet incorporates OCC's supervision by risk philosophy.  OCC examiners 
will exercise judgement when determining which of the procedures in this 
booklet are appropriate for a particular institution, and based on the institution's 
risk profile and the quality of its risk management process.

The new booklet is part of the Comptroller's Handbook and is available on the 
OCC Web site at www.occ.treas.gov.  Hard copies may be ordered using the form 
available on the OCC Web site or by sending a written request and a check for 
$15 per copy payable to the Comptroller of the Currency to: Comptroller of the 
Currency, P.O. Box 70004, Chicago, IL, 60673-0004.

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The OCC charters, regulates and examines approximately 2,200 national banks and 
52 federal branches of foreign banks in the U.S., accounting for more than 54 
percent of the nation's banking assets. Its mission is to ensure a safe and sound 
and competitive national banking system that supports the citizens, communities 
and economy of the United States.