U.S. banking regulators issue guidance on digital credentials for customer ID checks
U.S. banking regulators are clarifying how financial institutions can use government-issued digital identification in customer onboarding under anti-money laundering rules. The guidance applies to community banks and addresses state-issued mobile driver's licenses and other verifiable digital credentials under the Customer Identification Program rule.
Highlights
- On Sept. 8, 2026, U.S. banking regulators issued FAQs clarifying the use of verifiable digital credentials for customer identification compliance under CIP rules.
- The new guidance allows banks to use state-issued mobile driver's licenses and other government-issued digital IDs if they meet established verification standards.
- All community banks are covered by the bulletin, enabling adoption of digital identity tools for Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering compliance processes.
Guidance clarifies use of digital IDs
As reported by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the agency, together with FinCEN, the Federal Reserve Board, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the National Credit Union Administration, issued frequently asked questions on Sept. 8, 2026 covering the treatment of verifiable digital credentials.The answers explain how banks may use state-issued mobile driver's licenses and other government-issued verifiable digital credentials to comply with the Customer Identification Program, or CIP, rule under the Bank Secrecy Act and anti-money laundering framework.
The FAQs also define what qualifies as a verifiable digital credential and amend previously issued guidance to update terminology used to describe those credentials.
Implications for community banks
The bulletin is applicable to all community banks, giving smaller institutions additional regulatory direction as digital identity tools become more widely used in financial services compliance.By outlining how digital credentials fit within existing customer identification requirements, the agencies are signaling that banks can incorporate government-issued digital ID formats within current compliance processes if they meet the rule's standards.
The OCC said questions can be directed to its Compliance and Operational Risk Division within the Office of the Chief National Bank Examiner.
DOJ election monitoring in New Hampshire’s primary election was the focus of our earlier report, detailing the deployment of Civil Rights Division staff to polling places in Manchester and Nashua. We noted the effort is intended to support ballot security and compliance with federal voting laws, with monitoring set to continue through the primary season and expand ahead of midterms, while officials also invited public questions and complaints about potential voting-rights violations through Election Day.
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