In today’s podcast, which repurposes a recent webinar, we examine the impact, if any, of a landmark opinion rendered by Judge Daniel Domenico of the Federal District Court for the District of Colorado in a case challenging recently enacted Colorado legislation on interstate loans made from outside Colorado to Colorado residents.… Continue Reading

The 1978 landmark opinion in Marquette National Bank v. First of Omaha Service Corp held that under the National Bank Act, a national bank has the right to export the interest rate authorized by the state where the bank is located to borrowers located elsewhere. Section 521 of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980 (“DIDMCA”) conferred equivalent rate exportation powers on state-chartered, FDIC-insured banks.… Continue Reading

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) Director Rohit Chopra shared his insights at Consumer Bankers Association Live industry conference in Washington D.C. Reuters reported that Chopra told sideline reporters, “We are going to be looking into the credit card rewards market due to an increase in consumer complaints. What the marketing gurus and consultants are telling credit card issuers is that they should focus consumers’ attention on splashy rewards, but then withhold information from them when they’re paying lots of interest and could switch to a lower-rate card, even within the same bank.”… Continue Reading

Rhode Island, Minnesota, and Nevada have joined the list of jurisdictions considering proposals to legislatively opt out of federal interest rate preemption established under the federal Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980 (DIDMCA). Although the legal effect remains unclear, the apparent objective of these proposed laws is to prevent interest rate “exportation” by state-chartered financial institutions.… Continue Reading

After targeting credit card late fees in its proposed rule, the CFPB has set its sights on further attacking credit card pricing through interest rates. The CFPB published a blog late last month stating that credit card interest rate margins are at an all-time high, with an average 14.3% margin in 2023 compared to 9.6% margin in 2013, and have fueled the profitability of revolving balances.… Continue Reading

In a new data spotlight issued last week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) found that interest rates charged on credit cards issued by large banks are higher than interest rates charged on credit cards issued by smaller banks and credit unions. In a press release about the report, CFPB Director Rohit Chopra states that “the CFPB will be accelerating its efforts to ensure that consumers can access better rates that can save families billions of dollars per year.”… Continue Reading

In a blog post that appeared last week, the CFPB reported on research into various factors considered significant in explaining current credit card interest rates.  The CFPB reported that over 175 million Americans have at least one credit card, half of which carry a balance that continues to accrue increasingly high interest rates. … Continue Reading

A federal district court judge in the Southern District of New York ruled late last week that three credit unions had successfully established a likelihood of success on their claims that the retroactive application of New York’s recently-passed rate reduction law constitutes a regulatory taking in violation of the U.S. Constitution and preliminarily enjoined state sheriffs’ offices from enforcing the law.… Continue Reading

Three credit unions have filed a federal class action lawsuit in the Southern District of New York seeking to halt the enforcement or implementation of New York’s recently passed S.B. 5724A which would retroactively and prospectively lower the statutory annual interest rate on  consumer debt judgments from 9% to 2%.  The credit unions allege that the change in rates – set to take effect April 30, 2022 – violates the United States Constitution’s due process and property protections and should be struck down in its entirety.… Continue Reading