Financial Holding Company (FHC)

Financial Holding Company (FHC)

A financial holding company is a type of bank holding company that offers a range of non-banking financial services. Financial holding companies (FHC) were created by the 1999 Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which amended the 1956 Bank Holding Company Act to allow companies that control one or more banks — bank holding companies — to engage in non-banking financial activities if they register as an FHC A financial holding company (FHC) is a bank holding company that can offer non-banking financial services, such as insurance underwriting and investment advisory services. These activities, which are not permissible for ordinary bank holding companies, include: Insurance underwriting Securities dealing Merchant banking Securities underwriting Investment advisory services The Federal Reserve Board is responsible for supervising all bank holding companies, including FHCs. A financial holding company is a type of bank holding company that offers a range of non-banking financial services.

A financial holding company (FHC) is a bank holding company that can offer non-banking financial services, such as insurance underwriting and investment advisory services.

What Is a Financial Holding Company (FHC)?

A financial holding company is a type of bank holding company that offers a range of non-banking financial services.

A financial holding company (FHC) is a bank holding company that can offer non-banking financial services, such as insurance underwriting and investment advisory services.
The Federal Reserve oversees all FHCs.
Bank holding companies can become an FHC by meeting capital and management standards.
A nonbank company generating 85% of gross income from financial services can become an FHC.

Understanding a Financial Holding Company (FHC)

Financial holding companies (FHC) were created by the 1999 Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which amended the 1956 Bank Holding Company Act to allow companies that control one or more banks — bank holding companies — to engage in non-banking financial activities if they register as an FHC. These activities, which are not permissible for ordinary bank holding companies, include:

The Federal Reserve Board is responsible for supervising all bank holding companies, including FHCs. Any non-bank company that earns 85% of its gross income from financial services may elect to become an FHC but must divest itself of all nonfinancial businesses within 10 years. For a bank holding company to declare itself an FHC, it must meet certain capital and management standards.

Both bank and nonbank holding companies can become FHCs if they meet certain criteria.

Example of a Financial Holding Company

FHCs came about shortly after the 1998 merger between Citicorp and the insurance company Travelers Group. As a bank holding company, Citicorp was barred from selling insurance through a subsidiary. The chair of Travellers told the New York Times at the time, "We have had enough discussions to believe this will not be a problem."

The Fed granted a waiver allowing the merger to go through, and Bill Clinton signed the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act into law the following year. Goldman Sachs became an FHC in August 2009 and other major FHCs include Bank of America and Fifth Third Bancorp.

Related terms:

Fee Income

Fee income is the revenue produced by a financial institution that does not derive from the interest paid on loans. read more

Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999

The Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999 partially deregulated the financial industry by letting banks and insurers integrate their operations. read more

Federal Reserve Board (FRB)

The Federal Reserve Board (FRB) is the governing body of the Federal Reserve System, the U.S. central bank in charge of making monetary policy read more

The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 (GLBA)

The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 (GLBA) was a bipartisan regulation under President Bill Clinton, passed by U.S. Congress on November 12, 1999. read more

Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A)

Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) refers to the consolidation of companies or assets through various types of financial transactions. read more

Permissible Non-Bank Activities

Permissible non-bank activities are lines of business that can be conducted by bank holding companies because they are deemed acceptable by the regulator.  read more

Regulation R

Regulation R provides exemptions for banks from broker status as directed by Section 3 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.  read more

Universal Banking

Universal banking is when financial institutions offer a wide variety of financial services for their customers as a one-stop shop. read more