House passes tech modernization bill

The FUTURES Act cleared the House 417 to 7 this week. It stands for Fostering the Use of Technology to Uphold Regulatory Effectiveness in Supervision.

Regulators must assess their tech gaps

The bill requires the Federal Reserve, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and FDIC to report their technical capabilities to Congress. This will help lawmakers identify and fix technology shortfalls.

Congress will remove procurement barriers

Once regulators identify their tech gaps, lawmakers will work to break down procurement barriers and modernize their digital tools. The goal is to help government keep pace with the financial system.

“Congress needs to understand the red tape that is keeping government in the past while the financial system races into the future.”

Banks already do this regularly

Rep. Marlin Stutzman noted that banks and credit unions already undergo quarterly technology reviews and vendor due diligence. Regulators should be held to the same standard.

“It's only fair that we hold their regulators to the same standard.”

2023 bank failures exposed tech risks

Rep. Bill Foster cited the 2023 banking failures as evidence that 24-hour banking and social media panic can intensify bank runs. New technologies like agentic commerce bring additional cybersecurity risks.

Five-year reviews will track progress

The bill requires regulators to develop plans addressing their technology gaps and conduct follow-up reviews every five years. This ensures ongoing modernization of financial oversight.