The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) recently issued a press release announcing a 2023 update to its Equity Action Plan. The Equity Action Plan is part of HUD’s efforts to implement President Biden’s Executive Order on “Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government.”… Continue Reading

Our special guest is Richard (“Rick”) Hackett, former Assistant CFPB Director responsible for auto finance regulation and presently a member of the Board of F&I Sentinel, which supports lender compliance in the auto finance and insurance industry.  In December 2023, the FTC announced its Combatting Auto Retail Scams Rule, otherwise known as the “CARS Rule,” which sets new requirements on the sale, financing, and leasing of new and used vehicles by motor vehicle dealers. … Continue Reading

On April 9, 2024, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on credit card competition. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) requested testimony at the hearing from the following Chief Executive Officers who have publicly opposed his Credit Card Competition Act: Ryan McInerney (Visa), Michael Miebach (Mastercard), Scott Kirby (United Airlines), and Robert Isom (American Airlines).… Continue Reading

The American Bankers Association (ABA) has issued a new white paper, “Effective Agency Guidance: Examining Bank Regulators’ Guidance Practices,” that is intended to help agencies issue guidance that complies with legal requirements while providing useful advice and information to regulated entities.  The ABA also sent letters to the FDIC and CFPB in which the white paper serves as the foundation for comments on recently-issued guidance that the ABA believes would benefit from public input.… Continue Reading

On February 8, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) finalized its plan to ban robocalls that feature voices generated by artificial intelligence, aiming to stem the tide of AI-generated scams and misinformation campaigns. 

The FCC’s declaratory ruling formalized its position that the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA)—specifically, the provision prohibiting the initiation of calls “using an artificial prerecorded voice to deliver a message without the prior express consent of the called party”—applies to the use of AI-generated voices. … Continue Reading

The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) recently issued a statement of principles related to valuation discrimination and bias for member entities to consider in their consumer compliance and safety and soundness examinations. The member entities of the FFIEC are the Comptroller of the Currency, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Federal Reserve Board, National Credit Union Administration and the FFIEC State Liaison Committee.… Continue Reading

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) recently entered into proposed stipulations with a group of student loan debt relief providers to resolve allegations that the group conducted deceptive marketing and sales practices in collecting over $8 million in “junk fees” for nonexistent debt relief services.

Last August, the FTC filed a complaint against Express Enrollment LLC (d/b/a SLFD Processing), Intercontinental Solutions LLC (d/b/a Apex Doc Processing LLC), and their operators Marco Manzi, Ivan Esquivel, and Robert Kissinger alleging violations of the unfair or deceptive acts or practices (“UDAP”) prohibitions of Section 5(a) of the FTC Act , the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule (“TSR”), and Section 521 of the Gramm Leach Bliley Act, which prohibits obtaining a person’s financial information by making false statements, in connection with their deceptive marketing and sale of student loan debt relief services.… Continue Reading

The South Dakota Division of Banking issued a Memorandum notifying all licensed money lenders and non-residential mortgage lenders of their Bank Secrecy Act/Anti-Money Laundering (“BSA/AML”) obligations under a 2020 Final Rule published by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”). The final rule became effective in 2020, and the Memorandum requires licensees to comply by March 31, 2024.… Continue Reading

On February 2, 2024, three Republican members of the House Financial Services Committee sent a letter to Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) Chair Martin Gruenberg expressing concern regarding what the congressmen perceive to be the FDIC’s attempts to reduce engagement with industry participants on financial technology and innovation. The letter was sent by the Committee Chairman, Patrick McHenry, the Chairman of the Financial Institutions and Monetary Policy Subcommittee, Andy Barr, and the Chairman of the Digital Assets, Financial Technology and Inclusion Subcommittee, French Hill.… Continue Reading

In January 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposed two new rules: one restricting overdraft fees and the other prohibiting nonsufficient funds fees on certain declined transactions.  The proposals are the CFPB’s latest moves in furtherance of the Biden Administration’s “junk fees” agenda.  They represent a particularly aggressive use by the CFPB of its regulatory authorities with potentially significant implications.… Continue Reading