Bob Niemi is a senior advisor* for the Banking & Financial Services team in Bradley’s Tampa and Washington, D.C. offices. As a mortgage leader and industry advocate for more than 25 years, Bob understands the challenges facing clients in today’s regulatory environment. He has extensive experience in all facets of the lending industry, including auto finance, consumer and small dollar lending. As a CMB, he possesses training-level knowledge of the mortgage process and has a deep understanding of changing mortgage regulations.
During the pandemic, Bob was one of the leaders at Bradley to focus the discussion with state regulators to allow work from locations other than licensed locations. The discussion evolved to modernization of branch licensing how state supervision should function in a digital mortgage world. He was also a co-lead of Bradley’s remote work taskforce, which developed the model state legislation and regulatory principles for consideration. These were adopted by the Mortgage Bankers Association, were presented to state mortgage regulators and contributed to legislative changes to eight states in 2021. Bob also has been a featured speaker on more than a dozen webinars, conferences and industry meetings on this topic.
His time as Ohio’s chief lending regulator brought a familiarity with shifting regulations and evolving codes that allow Bob the perspective to assist clients in establishing business practices, policies, and training programs that are compliant and forward-thinking. Bob has utilized this talent to help shape mortgage laws and evolve lending regulations to reduce regulatory burden on lenders while preserving consumer protections.
Having served as the NMLS Ombudsman, a state regulator, a mortgage leader, and now a regulatory compliance advisor, Bob brings a unique perspective to financial service matters to help successfully develop consensus to resolve complex financial matters with workable outcomes. He has used his experience and relationships in advising consumer and automobile lenders in an array of regulatory and compliance matters, including licensing, examination and acquisitions.
Bob has been a frequent speaker for trade and regulator associations speaking to state and local MBAs, national MBA events, the American Association of Residential Mortgage Regulators, NMLS Annual Conference, American Financial Services Association, Money Transmitter Regulators Association and the Conference of State Bank Supervisors. He often presents on the coordinated regulatory activities of state and federal government, remote work, and the modernization of branch licensing and supervision. Bob has been a state-licensed mortgage originator, CMB instructor, trainer for state mortgage examiners, and an approved NMLS pre-licensing education mortgage instructor. He has authored a number of articles and is also a monthly columnist of “From the Desk of the OmBOBsman” for Mortgage Banking Magazine.
*Bob Niemi is not an attorney.
