In this special episode, Brooke Conkle and Chris Capurso discuss a recently released circular from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on consumer contracts. They are joined by special guest Caleb Rosenberg, who...more
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) has issued a circular warning covered persons that including unlawful or unenforceable terms and conditions in consumer contracts can violate the prohibition on...more
6/6/2024
/ Arbitration ,
Consent Order ,
Consumer Financial Contracts ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Contract Terms ,
Covered Person ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Unenforceable Contract Terms ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
Yesterday, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) issued an “interpretive rule,” subjecting “Buy Now, Pay Later” (BNPL) transactions to provisions of Regulation Z applicable to “credit cards.” Among other...more
5/23/2024
/ Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Credit Cards ,
Debt Collection ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Interpretive Rule ,
Regulation Z ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA)
Kansas Governor Laura Kelly signed House Bill (HB) 2247 into law, bringing significant changes to the Kansas Mortgage Business Act and the Uniform Consumer Credit Code (UCCC). The changes brought about by HB 2247 will largely...more
5/22/2024
/ Consumer Credit Protection ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Credit ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Interest Rates ,
Kansas ,
Late Fees ,
Mortgage Lenders ,
Mortgages ,
Payday Loans ,
Payment Plans ,
Right To Cure
As discussed here, last week the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Community Financial Services Association of America, Limited (CFSA) v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) holding that...more
5/20/2024
/ Banks ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v Community Financial Services Association of America Ltd ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Federal Funding ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 1071
As discussed here, in March 2023, the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) proposed new regulations under the California Financing Law that would interpret the definition of “loan” to include...more
5/7/2024
/ California ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Office of Administrative Law ,
Office of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ) ,
Payday Loans ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA) ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wages
On April 19, Kansas Governor Laura Kelly signed House Bill (HB) 2560 to regulate earned wage access (EWA) products and services. HB 2560 enacts the Earned Wage Access Services Act that requires EWA providers to be licensed by...more
4/26/2024
/ Banks ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Earned Wage Access ,
Electronic Fund Transfer Act ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
New Legislation ,
Payday Loans ,
Popular ,
Wage and Hour
On April 17, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) entered a consent order against BloomTech, a for-profit vocational school, and its CEO, Austen Allred, for deceptive marketing practices related to...more
On March 29, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) announced two more consent orders containing provisions relating to banks’ third-party risk management programs with respect to banking as a service (BaaS)...more
On February 20, the Wisconsin Senate passed House Bill (HB) 574 to regulate earned wage access (EWA) products and services. HB 574 creates a new chapter to the Wisconsin Statutes that requires EWA providers to be licensed by...more
On March 8, Washington State’s legislature passed a significant amendment (SB 6025) to the Consumer Loan Act (CLA) targeting bank model lending. SB 6025 is an updated version of a prior bill...more
On March 1, Senate Bill (SB) 335 was introduced, which, if passed, would impose certain requirements on “commercial financing transactions.” Recently, multiple states have enacted disclosure regulations for commercial...more
3/11/2024
/ Banks ,
Brokers ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Financial Transactions ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
State and Local Government
On February 15, Massachusetts became the latest state to introduce legislation to regulate earned wage access (EWA) products and services. House Bill (HB) 4456 would create a new chapter to the Massachusetts Code explicitly...more
Recently, Lead Bank and its loan servicer Hyphen, LLC, an online lending platform operating Helix Financial, filed a motion to dismiss a purported class action alleging violations of the Georgia Installment Loan Act (GILA)...more
2/7/2024
/ Annual Percentage Rate (APR) ,
Banks ,
Class Action ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Installment Agreements ,
Loan Agreements ,
Loan Servicer ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Payday Loans ,
RICO ,
Statutory Violations
Recently, Arizona, Kentucky, and Hawaii have jumped on the bandwagon to regulate earned wage access (EWA) products and services. Arizona’s proposed bill makes clear that EWA services are not considered to be loans or money...more
2/2/2024
/ Arizona ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Debt ,
Debt Collectors ,
Earned Wage Access ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Insufficient Funds ,
Overdraft Fees ,
Payday Loans ,
State and Local Government ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA) ,
Unpaid Wages ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wages
We are pleased to share our annual review of regulatory and legal developments in the consumer financial services industry. With active federal and state legislatures, consumer financial services providers faced a challenging...more
2/1/2024
/ Automotive Loans ,
Banks ,
Class Action ,
Consumer Bankruptcy ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Debt Collection ,
Digital Assets ,
Fair Lending ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Mortgages ,
Student Loans ,
Tribal Loans ,
Uniform Commercial Code (UCC)
On January 9, a group of five bi-partisan South Carolina Senators introduced Bill 910, which would, among other things, require persons (non-bank lenders) providing “consumer installment loans” or “deferred presentment loans”...more
1/29/2024
/ Ability-to-Repay ,
Borrowers ,
Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Loans ,
Non-Bank Lenders ,
Payday Loans ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulation Z
Late last month, the Revenue Based Finance Coalition (RBFC), a trade group of sales-based financing providers, filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida challenging the Consumer...more
1/18/2024
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Protection Act ,
Data Collection ,
Dodd-Frank ,
ECOA ,
Final Rules ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Section 1071
On December 22, Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen issued an opinion on whether Earned Wage Access (EWA) products constitute either “consumer loans” under Montana Code § 32-5-102(2)(a) or “deferred deposit loans” under §...more
Late last month, Councilmember Kenyan R. McDuffie introduced B 25-0609, entitled the Protecting Affordable Loans Amendment Act of 2023, that proposes to opt the District of Columbia out of sections 521-523 of the Depository...more
12/29/2023
/ Banks ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Lenders ,
DIDMCA ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Loans ,
Opt-Outs ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
True Lender ,
Usury
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) released its 14th annual report to Congress in fulfillment of its requirements under the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure (CARD) Act. For the...more
12/21/2023
/ CARD Act ,
Colleges ,
Consumer Financial Contracts ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Credit Cards ,
Educational Institutions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Late Fees ,
New Regulations ,
Students ,
Universities
This week, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued guidance to banks on managing the risks associated with “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) lending. Specifically, the bulletin addresses BNPL loans that are...more
In March 2023, the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) proposed new regulations under the California Financing Law that would update the definition of loan to include what it dubs as...more
12/7/2023
/ California ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) ,
Employees ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Loans ,
New Regulations ,
Regulation Z ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA) ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wages
On November 13, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Federal Reserve Board (Fed) announced increased dollar thresholds used to determine whether certain consumer credit and lease transactions in 2024 are...more
11/14/2023
/ Appraisal Rights ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Price Index ,
Credit ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Exemptions ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Financial Transactions ,
FRB ,
Leases ,
Mortgages ,
Regulation M ,
Regulation Z ,
Threshold Requirements ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA)
On October 13, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Senate Bill 666, which amends the California Financing Law to prohibit a covered entity from charging certain fees in connection with a commercial financing...more
11/10/2023
/ California ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Covered Entities ,
Depository Institutions ,
Due Diligence ,
Fees ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Financial Transactions ,
Lending ,
New Legislation ,
Payment Processors ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Small Business ,
UDAAP