While the implementation of blockchain among financial institutions is still far from being called “widespread,” big banks are bringing traditional practices into the blockchain sphere. Is that a watering down of blockchain's original intended purpose?

It is widely believed that financial technology is going to do to banks and brokerage firms what Amazon did to retailers. With the ever-increasing interest in using financial technology platforms as an alternative to conventional banking, the need for effective oversight over these products has never been greater.

Since enactment of the Dodd-Frank Act in July 2010, the law has dominated discussions at community banking forums and board meetings. Has all the fuss really been warranted? Has Dodd-Frank really been that detrimental to small community banks?

Long-term yields on interest rates have fallen quickly since the October 2018 “Powell Pivot,” which was when Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell chose not to raise interest rates until inflation accelerates. Frank L. Farone, managing director of Darling Consulting Group in Newburyport, Mass., discusses the challenges CPAs working with financial institutions now face, as well as a few lending and funding strategies they should consider. Farone will present this topic at PICPA’s 2019 Financial Institutions Conference on Sept. 17 at Penn State Great Valley in Malvern, Pa.

CPAs working for, or with, financial institutions are well aware of regulations and the implementation challenges that often accompany them. Barbara Stofflet, inspections leader with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), briefly discusses what CPAs working in this area need to key in on.