The combination of telecommunications and financial services represented by mobile payments is a potential regulatory minefield. The Federal Reserve and CFPB have both weighed in on regulating mobile payments, and now the FDIC is jumping in, as well.

The FDIC has released a new report called "Mobile Payments: An Evolving Landscape." It appears in the Winter 2012 issue of Supervisory Insights, the FDIC newsletter. The report looks at various mobile payments options, the risks associated with mobile payments and how banks offering mobile payments services can ensure compliance with existing laws and regulations.

"Banks may work with nonbank third parties to offer mobile payments services to their customers. However, these third-party providers may not be knowledgeable about the regulatory environment in which banks operate," said Sandra L. Thompson, director of the division of risk management supervision. "Therefore, banks' oversight of third-party relationships will become increasingly important as the mobile payments area evolves."

Supervisory Insights is the FDIC's forum on bank regulation and policies. The issue including the mobile payments discussion is available for free download.

For more stories like this, visit the regulatory issues research center.