The CFPB Ombudsman’s Office recently released its FY2020 annual report.  The Ombudsman’s Office is intended to serve as an independent, impartial, and confidential resource that assists consumers, financial entities, consumer or trade groups, and others in informally resolving process issues with the CFPB.

In the annual report, the Ombudsman provides examples of the Office’s work in FY2020 and discusses the types of internal and external engagement in which the Office has participated during that period. … Continue Reading

After discussing what real-time payments are and how they differ from fast payments, we look at the benefits of RTPs and potential for fraud, issues arising from the Fed’s plans to launch a RTP service, the laws and rules applicable to RTPs and how they bear on loss allocation, the pandemic’s effect on RTPs, and our expectations for the use of RTPs and the impact on fast payments generally.… Continue Reading

On November 20, 2020, the CFPB filed a lawsuit against a student-loan debt-relief company, FDATR, Inc., and its owners, Dean Tucci and Kenneth Wayne Halverson. FDATR was an Illinois company that involuntarily dissolved in September 2020.  Through telemarketing and telephone sales, FDATR promised to provide student-loan debt-relief and credit-repair services to consumers.… Continue Reading

On Monday and Tuesday, PLI held its two-day 25th Annual Consumer Financial Services Institute, which I co-chaired.  During the morning session of the first day, I co-moderated two consecutive panel discussions titled “Federal Regulators Speak,” with the first panel featuring CFPB and FTC representatives and the second panel featuring OCC and FDIC representatives. … Continue Reading

The FTC has announced a settlement of its first enforcement action targeting the practice of “debt parking.”  As described in the FTC’s complaint filed in a Missouri federal district court against Midwest Recovery Systems, LLC and its owners, this practice, also referred to as “passive debt collection,” involves the placing of purported debts on consumers’ credit reports without first attempting to communicate with consumers about the debts.… Continue Reading

The CFPB has issued its final Advisory Opinions Policy, which allows stakeholders to request interpretive guidance “to resolve regulatory uncertainty.”  While advisory opinions (AO) may address uncertainty in both statutes and regulations, the Bureau states in the Policy that it “will focus primarily on clarifying ambiguities in its regulations.”  The Policy was accompanied by the release of two AOs, one dealing with earned wage access (EWA) products and the other dealing with certain education loan products that refinance or consolidate a borrower’s pre-existing federal, or federal and private, education loans.… Continue Reading

After looking at the differing approaches of the former and current CFPB Directors to using the CFPB’s authorities, we look ahead to how the CFPB’s leadership is expected to change in a Biden Administration.  Topics discussed include how the choice of a new Director will be made (including the impact of the Georgia Senate runoff elections), who can serve as Acting Director pending a new Director’s confirmation, and what approach a new Director will take to using the CFPB’s authorities and how it will differ most from the current Director’s approach.… Continue Reading

On Monday, the FRB, FDIC, and OCC issued a “Statement on LIBOR Transition” that encourages banks to transition away from the London Inter-Bank Offered Rate (LIBOR) as soon as possible, and in any event by December 31, 2021.    

The agencies indicate that the LIBOR administrator has announced it will consult on its intention to cease publication of the one week and two month U.S.… Continue Reading

On Monday, the CFPB announced the following additions to its executive team:

  • Matthew R. Bettenhausen will serve as Senior Advisor and Counselor to the Director.  Mr. Bettenhausen previously served as an Assistant United States Attorney.
  • Chris Chilbert will serve as the Chief Information Officer in the Bureau’s Operations Division.  Before joining the Bureau, Mr.
… Continue Reading