Title 12 › Chapter CHAPTER 46— - GOVERNMENT SPONSORED ENTERPRISES › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER II— - REQUIRED CAPITAL LEVELS FOR REGULATED ENTITIES, SPECIAL ENFORCEMENT POWERS, AND REVIEWS OF ASSETS AND LIABILITIES › § 4617
The Director can put the Agency in charge of a failing regulated company as a conservator or a receiver. The Agency can be named when the company is insolvent, losing or hiding assets, breaking laws or orders, can’t pay its bills, is undercapitalized or critically undercapitalized, or the company agrees or is criminally convicted. The Director must name the Agency as receiver if the company’s debts have been more than its assets for 60 days or if it has not been generally paying its debts for 60 days. For a critically undercapitalized company, the Director must check in writing within 30 days of that status and at least every 30 days after. A receivership ends any conservatorship. The company can sue within 30 days to try to force the Agency to step down. Board members who agree to the takeover in good faith are not personally liable. While running the company, the Agency is not controlled by other federal or state agencies. Once in charge, the Agency takes the company’s books and assets and can run, sell, transfer, or liquidate the business. It can collect money owed to the company, hire help, form a temporary “limited‑life” company to hold assets, and use investigative powers (with the Director’s approval for subpoenas). The Agency must publish and mail notices to creditors and give at least 90 days after the first notice to file claims; it generally must decide claims within 180 days. If a claim is disallowed, the claimant has 60 days to sue. There are faster procedures for claims about secured interests (90‑day decisions). The receiver may pay allowed claims from the proceeds; unsecured claims are paid in this order: receiver’s costs, general senior liabilities, subordinated obligations, then shareholder claims. The Agency may undo certain transfers made within 5 years if done to hinder or cheat the company or its creditors. Short court stays are allowed (up to 45 days for a conservator, 90 days for a receiver). The Agency and any limited‑life company get tax and seizure protections, and a receiver may not revoke an enterprise’s charter.
Full Legal Text
Banks and Banking — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
Legislative History
Reference
Citation
12 U.S.C. § 4617
Title 12 — Banks and Banking
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73