The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) has released proposed regulations implementing the Digital Financial Assets Law (DFAL), creating a formal licensing regime for businesses engaging in a...more
4/23/2025
/ Comment Period ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) ,
Digital Assets ,
FinTech ,
Licensing Rules ,
Money Transmission Act ,
NMLS ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Requirements
On March 21, 2025, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) officially lifted sanctions on Tornado Cash, the decentralized cryptocurrency mixer it had blacklisted in August 2022....more
4/9/2025
/ Appeals ,
Biden Administration ,
Blacklist ,
Blockchain ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Delisting ,
Digital Assets ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FinTech ,
Hackers ,
Judicial Review ,
Money Laundering ,
North Korea ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Smart Contracts ,
Trump Administration
For years, UK-based consumer finance and payments firms have viewed the U.S. regulatory landscape as complex, fragmented, and challenging when it comes to expansion. But 2025 may prove to be a turning point....more
Financial services companies may feel relief from the aggressive federal oversight and regulation that defined the past decade. However, regulatory risk has not disappeared—it has shifted. ...more
3/13/2025
/ Consumer Contracts ,
Consumer Financial Contracts ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
EFTA ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
FDCPA ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Popular ,
Risk Management ,
State Attorneys General ,
State Regulators ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA) ,
UDAAP ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
President Trump issued an executive order last week targeting government regulation of the digital asset industry to support the "responsible growth and use of digital assets." On the campaign trail, Trump promised to make...more
As political tides shift, so too does the regulatory outlook for consumer financial services. Among the key documents that could shape the direction of U.S. financial regulation is a January 2021 report by the CFPB Taskforce...more
On the eve of a change in administration, the Biden/Chopra CFPB released a "Compendium of Recent CFPB Guidance," a sweeping collection of interpretations of federal consumer financial laws under the current leadership...more
1/23/2025
/ Advertising ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Biden Administration ,
Chevron Deference ,
Compliance ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Data Security ,
Debt Collection ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has proposed an interpretive rule aimed at addressing what it views as ambiguities in the application of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) and its implementing Regulation...more
1/23/2025
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Platforms ,
EFTA ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Online Gaming ,
Online Marketplace ,
Payment Systems ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulation E
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a Request for Information (RFI) to gather insights on how companies offering financial products and services collect, use, and monetize consumer payment and personal...more
1/17/2025
/ Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Privacy Rights ,
Data Collection ,
Data Privacy ,
Data Protection ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Monetization ,
Privacy Laws ,
Request For Information ,
Technology Sector
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a proposed rule under Regulation AA to address the use of restrictive and coercive clauses in consumer financial contracts. This proposal seeks to prohibit terms in...more
1/17/2025
/ Compliance ,
Consumer Financial Contracts ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Contract Terms ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulation A ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
UDAAP ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
On November 21, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) finalized a rule to supervise nonbank companies that offer digital wallets and payment apps. The rule allows the CFPB to supervise and examine nonbank companies...more
On July 25, 2024, the federal banking agencies issued a joint statement flagging potential risks in bank-fintech arrangements, along with a request for public information (RFI) on the benefits, risks, and risk management...more
7/31/2024
/ Banking Sector ,
Comment Period ,
Compliance ,
Federal Bank Regulatory Agencies ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinTech ,
Joint Statements ,
Public Comment ,
Request For Information ,
Risk Assessment ,
Risk Management
One of the questions that remains uncertain among looming federal and state “junk fee” and “drip pricing” bans in 2024 concerns the impact these rules will have on credit card surcharges. Surcharges are added to sale...more
5/20/2024
/ Consumer Financial Products ,
Credit Card Surcharges ,
Credit Cards ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Fees ,
Hidden Fees ,
MasterCard ,
Merchants ,
NYDFS ,
Surcharges ,
Visa Inc
On February 11, 2024, a new law went into effect in New York, establishing important limits and rules for surcharging. Enacted in December 2023, the new statute has a price disclosure component, detailing how surcharge prices...more
2/26/2024
/ Constitutional Challenges ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Credit Card Surcharges ,
Credit Cards ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
First Amendment ,
Merchants ,
New Guidance ,
New Legislation ,
Pricing ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Surcharges
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced it has reached a settlement with the bankrupt crypto company Voyager over the company’s alleged deceptive crypto marketing practices. Specifically, the FTC’s complaint alleges that...more
10/17/2023
/ Advertising ,
Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Cease and Desist ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Deposit Insurance ,
False Advertising ,
FDIC ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
FTC Act ,
Gramm-Leach-Blilely Act ,
Settlement Negotiations
On August 8, 2023, the Federal Reserve released new guidance for supervised banking organizations on how they can engage in certain crypto-asset-related activities. With the release of the guidance, the Federal Reserve...more
On June 16, 2023, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) released an update to its Supervisory Guidance on Multiple Re-Presentment NSF Fees (FIL-40-2022) (the "Guidance"), to provide additional guidance for...more
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a statement in collaboration with federal partners, including the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ), emphasizing that advanced technology...more
One of the biggest challenges for fintechs is ensuring that their services comply with federal and state money transmission laws. For example, a fintech operating as a payment facilitator faces significant money transmission...more
The U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced yesterday that they had reached settlements for over $24 million and $29 million,...more
10/14/2022
/ Bank Secrecy Act ,
BSA/AML ,
Compliance ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinCEN ,
Jurisdiction ,
Money Transmitter ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Settlement ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) ,
Trading Platforms ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Willful Violations
On Monday the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission issued a cease-and-desist order to Kim Kardashian for failing to disclose that she received $250,000 to promote EthereumMax’s digital tokens, “EMAX tokens,” on...more
10/5/2022
/ Cease and Desist Orders ,
Celebrity Endorsements ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Class Action ,
Cryptoassets ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Disgorgement ,
Endorsements ,
Ethereum ,
Failure To Disclose ,
FTC Endorsement Guidelines ,
Kim Kardashian ,
Prejudgment Interest ,
Real Estate Investments ,
Securities ,
Securities Fraud ,
Stock Promoters ,
Testimonial Statements
The FDIC has issued cease and desist letters (C&Ds) to five companies and their officers, directors, and employees for making crypto-related false or misleading representations about deposit insurance and to take immediate...more
In June, New York enacted a ticket transparency law seeking to make sweeping changes to how ticket prices are communicated to consumers and eliminate deceptive ticket pricing practices. The law will go into effect on...more
Anti-discrimination law applies to companies with black-box credit models using complex algorithms, according to a circular issued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on May 26, 2022. According to the CFPB, the...more
6/16/2022
/ Adverse Action ,
Algorithms ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Lenders ,
ECOA ,
Emerging Technologies ,
Fair Lending ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Machine Learning ,
UDAAP ,
Whistleblowers
Non-fungible tokens (NFTs), the metaverse, and Web3 bring with them a host of new legal challenges in such areas as IP, securities law, tax, and advertising. As NFTs revolutionize the digital landscape and global economy, it...more
6/9/2022
/ Advertising ,
Best Practices ,
Blockchain ,
Brand ,
Charitable Sales Promotion ,
Contests & Promotions ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Fundraisers ,
Gambling ,
Games ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Investors ,
Metaverse ,
Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) ,
Popular ,
Prizes ,
Sales Promotions ,
Securities Regulation ,
Sweepstakes ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax Planning ,
Virtual Currency ,
Webinars