Deregulation On The Horizon For Non-Bank Financial Institutions

On September 29, 2025, FinCEN issued a Notice and Request for Comment (the "Notice") on a proposed information gathering exercise – A Survey of the Costs of Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Compliance (the "Survey"). Specifically, the Survey is intended to gather information on direct compliance costs incurred by non-bank financial institutions in AML/CFT compliance and, to the extent those costs overlap with other obligations, the amount directly attributable to AML/CFT compliance.

The Notice is directed to specific categories of non-bank financial institutions: Casinos and Card Clubs; Money Services Businesses; Insurance Companies; Dealers in Precious Metals and Stones; Operators of Credit Card Systems; and Loan or Finance Companies.

In total, FinCEN estimates there will be 279,715 respondents falling into these categories, with the vast number – approximately 230,000 – being Money Services Businesses. Given FinCEN's assumption that the survey will take approximately 8 hours to complete, FinCEN estimates subject non-bank financial institutions to expend well north of 2 million hours providing the information sought. While compliance with the survey will be voluntary, FinCEN notes that "information gathered will help assess the cumulative impact of AML/CFT regulations and may inform efforts to adjust regulatory obligations and advance deregulatory proposals consistent with the Executive Orders of the Trump administration." It also states that "the data may also support the development of deregulatory rulemakings or guidance to reduce compliance burden without compromising the effectiveness of current AML/CFT frameworks." And, FinCEN makes clear that no information submitted will be used for any supervisory or enforcement purposes.

Plainly, and expressly, FinCEN is setting the stage for efforts to scale back non-bank financial institutions' compliance obligations, seeking comment on: the practical utility of compliance obligations, whether assumptions concerning compliance time-costs are accurate, ways to add efficiencies to the compliance process, ways information technology or other automated techniques can reduce manpower expended on compliance.

Comments will be accepted until December 1, 2025.

For ease of reference, we reproduce the proposed survey here:

1. What was the total estimated direct cost in calendar year 2024 for your institution for compliance with all programs mandated by the BSA and its implementing regulations?
2. Please specify which of the following areas your institution uses technological resources, including software, to assist with, as applicable:
   • customer identification and verification procedures;
   • identifying suspicious activity;
   • currency transaction reporting or reports relating to currency in excess of $10,000 received by a trade or business;
   • 314(a) information sharing
   • Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) compliance
3. Approximately what percentage of the total direct cost of AML/CFT compliance is attributable to the production of Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs), if applicable. These direct costs include costs associated with AML/CFT staff reviewing alerts, maintaining a transaction monitoring system, and investigating cases arising from alerts, whether or not they lead to the production of a SAR, among other things.
4. (OPTIONAL) If your institution is able to provide the following information without significant burden, please provide approximately what percentage of the total cost of AML/CFT compliance is directly attributable to, as applicable:
   • Customer identification and verification procedures;
   • Reporting requirements for suspicious activity reporting;
   • Reporting requirements for currency transaction reporting and exemptions or reports relating to currency in excess of $10,000 received by a trade or business;
   • Internal controls related to AML/CFT compliance program;
   • Independent testing for compliance by internal personnel or an outside party;
   • Training and staffing employees;
   • 314(a) information sharing;
   • Funds transfer record keeping;
   • Monetary instrument recordkeeping;
   • Special measures;
   • Software;
   • Additional financial institution-specific BSA recordkeeping obligations (e.g., monetary instrument logs, also known as negotiable instrument logs, for casinos; extension of credit, for casinos; additional records that dealers in foreign exchange must retain);
   • MSB registration;
   • Other third-party activities
5. What approximate percentage of the total cost of AML/CFT compliance is attributable to complying with OFAC regulations?
6. Does your institution conduct anti-financial crime activities or maintain systems designed to combat financial crime that are not directly required by the BSA or its implementing regulations? Examples include additional customer due diligence programs or the development and operation of a Financial Intelligence Unit. If so, what is the direct cost (not included in question 1) of these additional activities across all business lines of your institution in calendar year 2024. Separately, approximately what percentage of your institution's total operating expenses did these direct costs represent in calendar year 2024?
7. Please provide any available date or narrative comments for your institution regarding the extent to which the non-BSA driven expenditures (i.e., the costs referenced in question (6)) generate a substantial portion of either the overall suspicious activity, and/or of national AML/CFT priorities related threat activity, that is described in SARs, if applicable.
8. Please provide any available data or narrative comments on whether there are particular types of products, services, customers or delivery channels where AML/CFT-required monitoring, reviews or investigations that have generated limited useful information from your institution's perspective.

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