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National Survey of Banks' Efforts to Serve the Unbanked and Underbanked Frequently Asked Questions
- Why is the FDIC conducting this survey of banks’ efforts to serve the unbanked and underbanked?
Section 7 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Reform Conforming Amendments Act of 2005 - PDF (PDF Help) requires the FDIC to conduct a survey of FDIC-insured institutions every two years regarding their efforts to serve the unbanked. The FDIC is strongly committed to advancing economic inclusion for all segments of society and this survey effort is part of a number of initiatives that FDIC has underway. For more information on these FDIC initiatives, please visit: http://www.fdic.gov/consumers/community/index.html
- Who is Dove Consulting?
Dove Consulting was acquired by Hitachi Consulting in 2005 and is now part of the Financial Services National Practice. Over the past 25 years, Dove Consulting has conducted over 200 research and consulting projects for financial institutions’ retail operations and payment processors. Dove Consulting’s experience has spanned retail bank product design, marketing, account opening, customer on-boarding, ACH and check conversion internet banking, card strategies, and lockbox, operational process performance and core system. The firm has also conducted many national studies on banking and deposit access topics in cooperation with banks and networks. Dove Consulting has also conducted surveys on check cashing automation, non-bank financial institutions, and card products to serve unbanked and underbanked individuals. Dove Consulting recently worked with the Federal Reserve Board to produce the 2007 Electronic Payments Study - PDF (PDF Help).
- How can I be sure that my bank’s survey responses will not be used for secondary purposes by Dove Consulting?
Under the terms of the contract, Dove Consulting will only use the survey results within the scope of this project.
- How can I be sure my bank’s responses will be kept confidential and not be used for supervisory or other purposes by my regulator?
Confidentiality of survey results is a priority for the FDIC. Under the terms of the contract, Dove Consulting will collect survey responses and will certify that it has destroyed all individual bank identifying data or records prior to delivery of the survey results to the FDIC. The FDIC and other bank regulators will not be able to link survey responses to individual institutions.
- Will all financial institutions be asked to complete this survey?
No, the survey was mailed to a probability sample of FDIC-insured institutions. Not all FDIC-insured institutions will receive a survey.
- How were institutions chosen to participate in the survey questionnaire?
The survey was mailed to a probability sample of FDIC-insured institution. The selection of the institutions was designed so the information gathered through the questionnaire would be representative of all FDIC-insured institutions that have standard retail banking operations. Some types of specialized banking institutions, such as ILCs and credit card banks, have not been included in the study.
- Is it possible for my institution to participate in the survey even if we did not receive a survey in the mail?
FDIC-insured institutions can volunteer to be considered case study candidates. Institutions highlighted as case study banks will also be asked to complete a survey and agree to have their identity disclosed in the case studies. Case study candidates will retain the right to review the materials proposed for inclusion in the report or refuse permission to publish their results.
- Why are the case studies being conducted?
Case studies are being conducted to provide information about specific strategies that some financial institutions have implemented to expand their customer base and serve underbanked consumers.
- How are case study institutions being selected?
Case study banks are being selected on the basis of a variety of different types of information, including survey questionnaire responses and industry research. The final selection of banks is expected to reflect a variety of strategies to serve the unbanked as well as types of FDIC-insured institutions.
- Where can I obtain an electronic version of the survey?
You can download a MSWord or PDF version of the survey here:
National Survey of Banks' Efforts to Serve the Unbanked and Underbanked - Word 304k (Word Help)
National Survey of Banks' Efforts to Serve the Unbanked and Underbanked - PDF (PDF Help)
- When are institutions being asked to return the completed survey questionnaires?
We asked participating financial institutions to complete and mail back the questionnaires to Dove Consulting by June 6.
- What should I do with my completed survey form?
Please mail the completed survey form in the business reply envelope provided and addressed to: Dove Consulting, 2 Atlantic Ave., Boston, MA 02110. You can also fax it to (617) 482-1470 or email it to FDICsurvey@doveconsulting.com.
- Will the survey results be released to the public?
The aggregated survey results and survey findings will be submitted in a report to Congress and released to the public by the FDIC later this year.
- Who should I contact for questions regarding this survey effort?
For questions please contact: unbanked-banksurvey@fdic.gov.
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