A newly launched academic institute is seeking to influence the future direction of consumer financial services regulation by promoting a policy framework centered on consumer choice, market competition, empirical research, and innovation. In the podcast we are releasing today on Consumer Finance Monitor, our host Alan Kaplinsky (founder, former chair for 25 years and now senior counsel) interviewed Professors Todd Zywicki of George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School and Tom Miller of Mississippi State University about their newly created Institute for Consumer Financial Choice (ICFC), its mission, and its ambitious agenda.
The Institute officially launched this spring at George Mason University with a two-day conference held jointly with the Federal Trade Commission. The event brought together academics, policymakers, regulators, and practitioners to discuss the future of consumer financial regulation and to revisit the recommendations contained in the CFPB Task Force on Federal Consumer Financial Law’s (Task Force) landmark 2021 report, a report chaired by Professor Zywicki that continues to serve as a central intellectual foundation for the Institute’s work.
[The Task Force was established by then-CFPB Director Kathleen Kraninger in 2020 to conduct a comprehensive review of the federal consumer financial protection regime. After more than a year of work, the five-member Task Force issued its two-volume report in January 2021. The first volume, spanning nearly 900 pages, provided an exhaustive analysis of the history, economics, and legal framework of consumer financial regulation, while the second contained more than 100 recommendations for legislative, regulatory, and institutional reform. The report advocated greater reliance on empirical evidence, market competition, consumer choice, and rigorous cost-benefit analysis in developing consumer financial policy.
The report immediately became one of the most controversial products ever issued under CFPB auspices. Consumer advocacy organizations sharply criticized it as reflecting an overly market-oriented philosophy and as favoring industry interests at the expense of consumer protection. After Director Rohit Chopra assumed leadership of the CFPB later in 2021, the Bureau formally disavowed the Task Force’s work stating that it did not represent the views of the CFPB and characterizing the Task Force as having been established in violation of the Federal Advisory Committee Act. The report was removed from the CFPB’s principal website and effectively relegated to history. Nevertheless, despite its official repudiation, the report continues to be cited by academics, practitioners, and policymakers for its extensive empirical research, historical analysis, and comprehensive treatment of federal consumer financial law. Indeed, one of the principal goals of the new Institute for Consumer Financial Choice is to revive scholarly engagement with the report’s analysis and recommendations and to use it as a foundation for future research and policy development.
A Different Vision of Consumer Protection
Unlike many organizations active in consumer finance policy, the ICFC begins from the premise that well-functioning competitive markets are themselves an important form of consumer protection. Rather than viewing regulation and deregulation as opposite ends of a policy spectrum, the Institute seeks to identify regulatory approaches that encourage innovation, expand consumer choice, and improve market performance while still protecting consumers from genuine abuses.
As Professor Zywicki explained during our discussion, technological developments, including FinTech innovation, stablecoins, artificial intelligence, and new methods of product distribution, require policymakers to rethink traditional approaches to consumer financial regulation. The Institute intends to develop an intellectual framework better suited to these rapidly evolving markets.
Beyond Research: Influencing Policy
Although rigorous empirical research lies at the core of the Institute’s mission, its ambitions extend well beyond academic scholarship. The ICFC plans to:
- Produce peer-reviewed empirical research;
- File amicus briefs in important litigation;
- Submit regulatory comment letters;
- Educate students, policymakers, and industry participants; and
- Serve as a resource for legislators and regulators confronting emerging consumer finance issues.
Professor Miller emphasized that high-quality empirical research remains essential to sound policymaking. The Institute hopes to become a repository for valuable industry data that can support rigorous academic work, while maintaining complete academic independence from those providing funding or data.
Revisiting the CFPB Task Force Report
One of the Institute’s earliest priorities is breathing new life into the CFPB Task Force Report issued in 2021. Although largely ignored during the Biden Administration, Professors Zywicki and Miller believe the report remains one of the most comprehensive analyses ever produced concerning federal consumer financial law.
The Institute recently hosted an academic symposium devoted entirely to the Task Force Report, encouraging scholars from across the ideological spectrum to analyze, critique, and expand upon its recommendations. According to Professor Zywicki, the report was intended to serve as a long-term roadmap for researchers, legislators, regulators, and courts, not merely as a report directed to a particular administration.
Research Priorities
The Institute has already identified an ambitious research agenda that includes:
- Evaluating whether the Military Lending Act has improved access to credit for servicemembers;
- Conducting new empirical research on the pawn industry;
- Studying ancillary financial products such as GAP insurance and extended warranties;
- Examining payday lending regulation;
- Investigating rural financial inclusion;
- Exploring stablecoins, cryptocurrency, and digital payments; and
- Assessing how existing regulatory structures can better accommodate technological innovation.
The emphasis throughout is on gathering empirical evidence before proposing policy solutions.
Artificial Intelligence Moves to the Forefront
One particularly interesting portion of our discussion focused on artificial intelligence.
Professor Zywicki argued that AI presents both enormous opportunities and significant risks for consumer financial services. Among the issues likely to receive increasing attention are:
- AI-assisted financial decision-making;
- Data privacy and cybersecurity;
- Authentication methods that move beyond traditional passwords;
- Agentic AI capable of initiating financial transactions; and
- Appropriate regulatory frameworks that encourage innovation without unnecessarily restricting competition.
Rather than beginning with the assumption that new technology should be tightly regulated, the Institute intends to examine whether markets remain competitive and whether technological developments ultimately benefit consumers.
Policy Issues Likely to Receive Immediate Attention
During the interview, Professors Zywicki and Miller identified several policy areas where they believe the Institute can have an immediate impact:
- Interest rate caps and usury laws;
- APR disclosures and widespread misunderstanding of APR as a measure of price;
- Payment systems and interchange regulation;
- Federal preemption and the future of dual banking;
- Financial inclusion;
- Stablecoin regulation; and
- Emerging litigation involving consumer financial regulation.
The Institute has already begun preparing amicus briefs in significant cases involving consumer financial services and expects litigation support to become an increasingly important component of its work.
An Invitation to Debate
One aspect of the discussion that I found particularly noteworthy was the Institute’s stated commitment to engaging scholars from across the ideological spectrum. Both Professors emphasized that the Institute welcomes disagreement, provided it is grounded in rigorous empirical analysis rather than political advocacy. They also stressed that the Institute is not a consulting organization and will preserve its academic independence regardless of its funding sources.
Looking Ahead
Whether one agrees with every policy position advanced by Professors Zywicki and Miller or not, the Institute for Consumer Financial Choice is likely to become an influential participant in consumer financial services policy discussions over the coming years.
The Institute’s long-term success will ultimately be measured not by the number of conferences it hosts or papers it publishes, but by whether its research meaningfully influences legislation, regulation, litigation, and public understanding of consumer financial services. Based on my conversation with Professors Zywicki and Miller, they have set ambitious goals and they appear determined to pursue them.
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The podcast recording is here.