The Federal Depository Insurance Corporation is asking the industry for comments concerning the existing and potential use of digital assets by depository institutions.

The FDIC is seeking comment on the scope of IDIs' use of digital assets and whether such involvement extends beyond activities involving (i) technology solutions, such as closed and open payment systems, (ii) assets, such as investments and collateral, (iii) liabilities, such as deposit services and (iv) custody, such as safekeeping services.

It also wants to know whether IDIs have risk and compliance management procedures specific to digital assets, what operational benefits IDIs consider when assessing digital asset 'use cases' (see below), how IDIs are integrating digital assets operations with older banking systems, the possible benefits or specific risks associated with digital asset product offerings or services to customers, how IDIs are including digital asset technology in their cybersecurity procedures, whether the FDIC should clarify or expand its guidelines to take digital asset activities into consideration and whether it should try to help customers to find out whether a "digital asset product" is insured or uninsured.

[Editor's note: A "use case" is a list of actions or event steps typically defining the interactions between a role (known in the Unified Modelling Language as an actor) and a system to achieve a goal. The actor can be a human or other external system.]

Comments are due by 16 July.

* Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft can be reached on +1 212 504 6000 or at cwtinfo@cwt.com