On December 10, the CFPB announced the beta release of the new HMDA Platform. The beta version enables financial institutions to become familiar with the platform and permits entities to establish log-in credentials, upload sample files, validate data, and confirm their submissions of test data. Entities can test and retest throughout the beta period, and any test data will be removed from the system when the 2018 filing period opens on January 1, 2019. The announcement reminds institutions that in order to use the beta version of the HMDA Platform as well as to file HMDA data collected in 2018, financial institutions must have a Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) and that LEI must be recognized by the HMDA Platform in order to create a new account or test data with an existing account.