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.
Regulatory Supervision
FHA Makes Rule Changes for Branch Registration
Based upon “the mortgage industry’s evolution over time, the advancement of technology, and due to no longer needing to maintain several branch offices to conduct FHA business nationwide,” the FHA has adopted a new rule regarding branch registration.
Under the prior rule, all FHA-approved mortgagees and lenders were required to register any branch office where…
Connecticut Banking Commissioner Order Highlights Risks Associated with Call Center Mortgage Loan Origination and Employee Social Media Use
On January 4, 2024, Connecticut Banking Commissioner Jorge L. Perez issued a temporary order to cease and desist against LoanSnap, Inc., ordering LoanSnap to cease and desist certain activities and notifying LoanSnap that its state mortgage lender license will be revoked and a civil money penalty will also be issued against it. The charges against the California-based…
Insurers and Financial Institutions Face Increasing Scrutiny from States in the ESG Debate
In just a couple of years, “ESG” (environmental, social and governance) has gone from an obscure acronym to a term regularly bandied about in the news, as insurers and financial institutions face legal scrutiny into their investing practices.
A little more than a year ago, we addressed the trend of laws that divest state assets…
Navigating the CFPB’s Final Rule on Dodd-Frank Section 1071
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently issued its final rule to implement Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The rule amends the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), introducing substantial data collection and reporting requirements for small business lenders and finance companies. In this blog post, we delve deeper…
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…
CFPB Updates Mortgage Servicing Exam Procedures
On January 18, 2023, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released an updated version of its Mortgage Servicing Examination Manual. As the CFPB described in a corresponding blog post, the manual outlines “the types of information that CFPB examiners gather to evaluate mortgage servicers’ policies and procedures; assess whether servicers are complying with…
Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Invalidates Small-Dollar Rule, Throws the Future of the CFPB Into Question
On October 19, 2022, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals issued its opinion in Community Financial Services Association of America, et al. v. CFPB (CFSA v. CFPB) invalidating the CFPB’s Payday, Vehicle-Title, and Certain High-Cost Installment Loans rule (Small-Dollar Rule). The three-member panel decision calls into question the future viability of the CFPB…
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…
Georgia Passes Historic Mortgage Licensing Law
On May 2, 2022, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed SB 470, which amends provisions of Georgia’s banking laws relating to the denial or revocation of a mortgage license or registration due to certain felony convictions. SB 470 will reduce the impact on mortgage companies as a result of Georgia’s existing prohibition on the employment of…