(a) Activities permitted under section 5136A(b)(3) of the Revised Statutes (12 U.S.C. 24a(b)(3)). (1) The following types of activities are financial in nature or incidental to a financial activity when conducted pursuant to a determination by the Secretary under paragraph (a)(2) of this section:

(i) Lending, exchanging, transferring, investing for others, or safeguarding financial assets other than money or securities;

(ii) Providing any device or other instrumentality for transferring money or other financial assets; and

(iii) Arranging, effecting, or facilitating financial transactions for the account of third parties.

(2) Review of specific activities— (i) Is a specific request required? A financial subsidiary that wishes to engage on the basis of paragraph (a)(1) of this section in an activity that is not otherwise permissible for a financial subsidiary must obtain a determination from the Secretary that the activity is permitted under paragraph (a)(1).

(ii) Consultation with the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. After receiving a request under this section, the Secretary will provide the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) with a copy of the request and consult with the Board in accordance with section 5136A(b)(1)(B)(i) of the Revised Statutes (12 U.S.C. 24a(b)(1)(B)(i)).

(iii) Secretary action on requests. After consultation with the Board, the Secretary will promptly make a written determination regarding whether the specific activity described in the request is included in an activity category listed in paragraph (a)(1) of this section and is therefore either financial in nature or incidental to a financial activity.

(3) What factors will the Secretary consider? In evaluating a request made under this section, the Secretary will take into account the factors listed in section 5136A(b)(2) of the Revised Statutes (12 U.S.C. 24a(b)(2)) that the Secretary must consider when determining whether an activity is financial in nature or incidental to a financial activity.

(4) What information must the request contain? Any request by financial subsidiary under this section must be in writing and must:

(i) Identify and define the activity for which the determination is sought, specifically describing what the activity would involve and how the activity would be conducted; and

(ii) Provide information supporting the requested determination, including information regarding how the proposed activity falls into one of the categories listed in paragraph (a)(1) of this section, and any other information required by the Secretary concerning the proposed activity.

(b) [Reserved]

[66 FR 260, Jan. 3, 2001]