As used in sections 381.410 and 381.412, the following terms mean:

1. (1) "Cashier's check", a check, however labeled, drawn on the financial institution, which is signed only by an officer or employee of such institution, is a direct obligation of such institution, and is provided to a customer of such institution or acquired from such institution for remittance purposes;
2. (2) "Certified funds", U.S. currency, funds conveyed by a cashier's check, certified check, teller's check, as defined in Federal Reserve Regulations CC, or wire transfers, including written advice from a financial institution that collected funds have been credited to the settlement agent's account;
3. (3) "Director", the director of the department of insurance, unless the settlement agent's primary regulator is another division in the department of economic development. When the settlement agent is regulated by such division, that division shall have jurisdiction over sections 381.410 and 381.412;

4. (4) "Financial institution":

   1. (a) A person or entity doing business under the laws of this state or the United States relating to banks, trust companies, savings and loan associations, credit unions, commercial and consumer finance companies, industrial loan companies, insurance companies, small business investment corporations licensed pursuant to the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 (15 U.S.C. Section 661, et seq.), as amended, or real estate investment trusts as defined in 26 U.S.C. Section 856, as amended, or institutions constituting the Farm Credit System pursuant to the Farm Credit Act of 1971 (12 U.S.C. Section 2000, et seq.), as amended, or any person which services loans secured by liens or mortgages on real property, which person may or may not maintain a servicing portfolio for such loans; or

   2. (b) The following persons or entities if their principal place of business is in Missouri or a state which is contiguous to Missouri:

      1. a. A mortgage loan company which is subject to licensing, supervision or auditing by the Federal National Mortgage Association, or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, or the United States Veterans Administration, or the Government National Mortgage Association, or the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, or a successor of any of the foregoing agencies or entities, as an approved seller or servicer; or
      2. b. A person or entity acting as a mortgage loan company pursuant to court order;
5. (5) "Settlement agent", a person, corporation, partnership, or other business organization which accepts funds and documents as fiduciary for the buyer, seller or lender for the purposes of closing a sale of an interest in real estate located within the state of Missouri, and is not a financial institution, or a member in good standing of the Missouri Bar Association, or a person licensed under chapter 339, RSMo.

(L. 1996 S.B. 664)