Banking Sector Vet Rodney Hood Named Acting OCC Head

One of America’s main financial regulators has a new acting director.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced Friday (Feb. 7) his plans to appoint Rodney Hood to serve as the first deputy comptroller for the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). In this position, the announcement said, Hood will serve as acting comptroller of the currency.

“The strong leadership and career experience of Rodney Hood will strengthen the OCC’s efforts to ensure the safety and soundness of the banking system while also enhancing economic growth,” said Bessent.

Hood has served two tenures on the National Credit Union Administration Board , serving as the board’s chair under the first Trump administration. He has also held senior roles in retail finance, commercial banking, affordable housing, and community development at the likes of JPMorgan Chase, GE Capital, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo.

“I remain steadfastly committed to serving the American people and the banking system by creating a regulatory structure that fulfills our obligations, fosters innovation, and promotes financial inclusion, including those Americans who have been debanked and underserved,” Hood said in the announcement.

As PYMNTS wrote late last year, a number of figures in the cryptocurrency and FinTech space have been warning about “debanking,” accusing the industry of shutting out conservatives from financial services.

“At the heart of the issue is potentially the lack of a clear, comprehensive regulatory framework to address the unique risks posed by the FinTech and cryptocurrency industries,” that report said. “Financial institutions, tasked with navigating a labyrinth of overlapping and often contradictory rules themselves, can commonly be left with little incentive to take on high-risk clients when the compliance burden could outweigh any potential gains.”

Hood’s appointment comes amid some major changes to the government’s approach to financial regulation, including the recent freeze on enforcement efforts by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

“Community banks have suffered immensely as increased regulatory requirements force them to devote more and more resources to lawyers and check-the-box compliance programs instead of serving their customers,” Rep. French Hill, R-Ark., who chairs the House Financial Services Committee, said during a hearing last week.