OCC’s Dugan to Leave Post August 14

John C. Dugan announced Thursday that he will leave his role at the ""Office of the Comptroller of the Currency"":http://www.occ.treas.gov/index.htm (OCC) on August 14, 2010.

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This departure, which was not expected, comes as Dugan's five-year term as the 29th Comptroller of the Currency draws to a close.

In a ""letter notifying President Obama of his resignation"":http://www.occ.treas.gov/ftp/release/2010-74a.pdf, Dugan noted that the banking system has ""strengthened considerably"" since the worst days of the economic crisis, when its very viability seemed in question. He said the condition of the national banking system is now much improved, with credit trend getting better in a number of areas.

Dugan added that it now seems likely that failed and failing national banks will be resolved without taxpayer losses. And he said it seems equally likely that the government will earn a substantial profit from the ""extraordinary"" temporary assistance that it provided to national banks during the crisis.

""In short, while the financial system continues to face significant challenges, national banks have stabilized, confidence has improved markedly, and institutions are now in a much stronger position to help fund economic recovery,"" Dugan wrote in his letter.

Dugan's decision to leave office comes as Congress is in the final stages of considering the Financial Reform Bill. If passed, this legislation will preserve and expand the OCC's role as a dedicated prudential supervisor of federally chartered banks and thrifts. Dugan said this exclusive supervisory focus will serve the nation well in the future when the banking system is tested once again, as it surely will be.

The OCC is the oldest regulatory agency in the federal government, having been established during the administration of President Lincoln in 1863. Dugan said the mission of this agency ""is straightforward and vitally important: to regulate and supervise nationally chartered banks to ensure both their safety and soundness and their compliance with laws enacted to protect bank customers.""