On September 17, 2024, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) rulemaking board proposed new recordkeeping rules intended to bolster the FDIC’s ability to make deposit insurance determinations for accounts that are the product of a partnership between an FDIC-insured depository institution (IDI) and a financial technology company (fintech). However, despite the proposed rule’s focus on
FinTech
Supreme Court Upholds Constitutionality of CFPB’s Funding Mechanism
“Although there may be other constitutional checks on Congress’ authority to create and fund an administrative agency, specifying the source and purpose is all the control the Appropriations Clause requires.” With these words, seven members of the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s funding mechanism and forestalled the possibility that…
CFPB Invokes “Dormant” Authority and Unveils First Public Supervisory Designation of a High-Risk Nonbank Installment Lender
Nearly two years ago, in April 2022, the CFPB issued a press release announcing its intent to start exercising its authority to examine non-bank financial services institutions that the CFPB has “reasonable cause to determine pose risks to consumers.” The agency also indicated that it would release to the public the results of such supervision.
Questions to Consider as Regulators Increase Scrutiny of Medical Debt
Over the last year and a half, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has become increasingly interested in the origination, servicing, and collection of medical debt. The CFPB alone has published several pieces of industry guidance, 13 press releases concerning medical debt, and 12 reports concerning aspects of medical debt. Moreover, the CFPB is not…
Federal Regulators Solicit Comments Regarding Healthcare Point-of-Sale Financing
On July 7, the CFPB, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), and Department of the Treasury issued a formal request for information regarding forms of consumer-facing healthcare financing. The inquiry specifically solicits comments “from the public and interested parties on medical credit cards, loans, and other financial…
Supreme Court to Decide CFPB’s Validity
Less than three years after the U.S. Supreme Court reviewed the CFPB’s appointment structure, the bureau again finds itself before the Court in what could prove the most consequential case for the financial services industry in years. Four months ago, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision in Community Financial Services Association of…
The Countdown Is on for Factors, MCAs, and Other Commercial Financing Providers to Comply with California’s Commercial Disclosure Law, and the Deadline Is Sooner Than You Think
In 2018, California became the first state to pass a commercial finance disclosure law (CDL) requiring certain commercial finance companies to make consumer-style disclosures to financing recipients. The CDL was the catalyst for the passage of similar laws in Utah, Virginia, and New York, and the introduction of commercial disclosure legislation in many other states…
Fintechs and Non-banks Beware: CFPB to Utilize “Dormant Authority” to Examine Fintechs and Other Non-bank Financial Services Companies
On Monday, the CFPB issued a press release announcing that it will start using its authority to examine non-bank financial services institutions that the CFPB has “reasonable cause to determine pose risks to consumers.” In addition, the CFPB has released a procedural rule designed to “increase transparency of the risk-determination process” by subjecting the results…
FTC Updates CFPB on Action in the Fair Lending Space
In early February, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sent its annual letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The letter explained the FTC’s activities related to the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and Regulation B of ECOA. Pursuant to a January 2012 memorandum of understanding between the CFPB and the FTC, and consistent with…
CFPB Sets Sight On “Buy Now Pay Later” in Targeted Inquiries
On December 16, the CFPB announced that it had issued orders to five companies providing “Buy Now Pay Later” (BNPL) products to “collect information on the risks and benefits of these fast-growing loans.” Earlier this year, the CFPB released a blog directed at consumers explaining how BNPL products operate and identifying potential risks associated with…