On August 8, 2023, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (FRB) issued two Supervision and Regulation Letters (“SR Letters”) that provide guidance on the agency’s supervision of novel activities and the process...more
Reflecting expected heightened regulatory scrutiny of fintech-bank partnerships, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) issued a consent order for a bank that is deep in the bank-fintech sponsorship space over...more
The current banking crisis, which in significant part has been focused on regional banks catering to fintech companies, is likely to result in increasing regulatory focus on an industry already subject to regulatory scrutiny....more
In the wake of two bank failures last week, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) was appointed as receiver for each failed bank (“Receiver”). The Receiver subsequently transferred all deposits (both insured and...more
On November 16, 2022, the Department of Treasury (“Treasury”) issued a report titled “Assessing the Impact of New Entrant Non-bank Firms on Competition in Consumer Finance Markets” (“Treasury Report”), which, among other...more
12/7/2022
/ Banking Sector ,
Competition ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Executive Orders ,
FDIC ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Popular ,
Risk Management ,
Supervision ,
U.S. Treasury
In part two of this year’s Fellows subseries, Wetmore Fellows Alex Devine and Kimberly Valladares host a discussion with Boston Managing Partner David Ephraim and Washington, D.C. Finance Partner Crystal Kaldjob about the...more
Welcome to the Financial Services Report, holiday style! Banks and non-banks alike started early this year with additions and changes to their regulator stockings. The Senate confirmed Rohit Chopra as the new CFPB Director....more
12/15/2021
/ BSA/AML ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Credit Cards ,
Credit Reports ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Data Collection ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Fair Lending ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Libor ,
OCC ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Payment Systems ,
Ransomware ,
Redlining ,
Risk Assessment ,
Student Loans ,
TCPA ,
Technology ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA) ,
U.S. Treasury ,
UDAAP ,
UDAP
We start this issue with a big, virtual welcome to our new colleague Maria Earley. Maria joined us last month as a partner in our Financial Services and Fintech Groups. She represents financial services and fintech companies...more
9/15/2021
/ Banking Sector ,
BSA/AML ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
FDCPA ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
FinCEN ,
FinTech ,
Joe Biden ,
Military Lending Act ,
OCC ,
TCPA ,
True Lender
Reflecting the expected heightened regulatory scrutiny of fintechs engaged in bank partnerships, both Illinois and Maine recently enacted laws that place restrictions on fintechs engaged in lending partnerships with banks....more
On August 11, 2021, the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) issued new guidance, titled “Authentication and Access to Financial Institution Services and Systems” (“Guidance”), which provides examples of...more
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) entered into a Consent Order with a lending platform that services and facilitates the origination of consumer loans through a merchant network. The platform agreed to provide...more
On June 30, 2021, President Biden signed a Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution rescinding the OCC True Lender Rule, a bright-line rule issued in October 2020 to simplify the standards governing when a traditional bank...more
As spring turns to summer, climate change is on our minds. A new day, a new story about how financial institutions are addressing climate-related risks. In the past few months, six major banks—Bank of America, JPMorgan...more
6/9/2021
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Arbitration ,
Artificial Intelligence ,
Banking Sector ,
Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
BSA/AML ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Climate Change ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cybersecurity ,
Department of Education ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Eviction ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinCEN ,
FRB ,
FSOC ,
HOLA ,
Landlords ,
Mortgages ,
NYDFS ,
OCC ,
Popular ,
Student Loans ,
TCPA ,
U.S. Treasury
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit revived the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s (OCC) controversial special-purpose national bank charter that had been challenged by the New York Department of...more
Can you say 0 to 60? Not cars, but pretty much everything to do with financial services. A new year, a new administration, and new challenges for providers. Prior CFPB Director Kraninger is long gone. Acting Director Uejio...more
3/2/2021
/ Arbitration ,
Banking Sector ,
BSA/AML ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Comptroller ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Reporting Agencies ,
Convertible Virtual Currencies (CVCs) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cybersecurity ,
Data Breach ,
Data Protection ,
Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) ,
Digital Assets ,
Dodd-Frank ,
ECOA ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Fair Lending ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinCEN ,
Interest Rates ,
Interpretive Letters ,
Memorandum of Understanding ,
Military Lending Act ,
Minority-Owned Businesses ,
Mortgages ,
OCC ,
Payday Loans ,
PayPal ,
Preemption ,
Regulation D ,
SAR ,
SCOTUS ,
Small Business ,
State Attorneys General ,
TCPA ,
True Lender ,
Truth in Lending Act (TILA) ,
UK ,
Women-Owned Businesses
Happy post-election, post-socially-distanced Thanksgiving, and pre-New Year’s newsletter. Banks, non-banks, and FinTechs can look forward to eight days of announcements from the Biden transition team with their latkes and...more
12/11/2020
/ Arbitration ,
Banking Sector ,
Bitcoin ,
BSA/AML ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Data Breach ,
Debt Collection ,
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ,
Fair Lending ,
Federal Savings Associations ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinCEN ,
FinTech ,
FRB ,
Main Street Lending Programs ,
Mobile Payments ,
OCC ,
Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) ,
SBA ,
TCPA ,
Third-Party Service Provider
Capping off months of proposed rules and settlements addressing marketplace lending issues, on October 27, 2020, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) finalized a rule specifying that a national bank or federal...more
We join the nation in mourning the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Over her 20-year career before appointment to the D.C. circuit court, Justice Ginsburg fought for equal rights in the workplace, among...more
10/16/2020
/ Arbitration ,
BSA/AML ,
California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
CRA ,
Credit Cards ,
Cybersecurity ,
ECOA ,
Fair Lending ,
FDIC ,
FFIEC ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinCEN ,
FRB ,
Governor Newsom ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Main Street Lending Programs ,
OCC ,
Public Assistance ,
Ruth Bader Ginsberg ,
Safe Harbors ,
SBREFA ,
TCPA ,
Underwriting ,
Volcker Rule
Ending years of litigation, the Colorado Attorney General and the Administrator of the Colorado Uniform Consumer Credit Code (“Administrator”) announced a settlement with marketplace lenders Avant of Colorado, LLC and...more
On July 23, 2020, in an effort to increase transparency in commercial financings so borrowers may make more informed decisions, the New York State legislature passed a bill, S5470B, which currently awaits the Governor’s...more
On July 20, 2020, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that would establish when national banks or federal savings associations (collectively, banks) are the “true lender”...more
Is it just us or does March 4 — the date of our last issue — feel like a million years ago? Like you, and not necessarily in this order, we have been: doing our work; keeping up with COVID-19-related laws, guidance, and...more
7/15/2020
/ Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) ,
Arbitration ,
Auto-Dialed Calls ,
BSA/AML ,
CARES Act ,
Consent Order ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
CRA ,
Dodd-Frank ,
E-SIGN ,
Fair Lending ,
FASB ,
FDIC ,
Federal Reserve ,
FinCEN ,
FinTech ,
HMDA ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Money Market Mutual Fund Liquidity Facility (MMLF) ,
OCC ,
Paycheck Protection Program Lending Facility (PPPLF) ,
Popular ,
Remittance Transfer Rule ,
Request For Information ,
RESPA ,
SPVs ,
TCPA ,
Volcker Rule
On June 25, 2020, following the OCC’s lead, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s (FDIC) board of directors voted 3-1 to finalize a rule that reaffirms the “valid when made” doctrine as applicable to loans originated by...more
On May 29, 2020, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) finalized a rule that reaffirms the “valid when made” doctrine applicable to loans originated by a national bank. According to Acting Comptroller of the...more
Punxsutawney Phil didn’t see his shadow, so we’re expecting an early spring. Maybe that’s why mini-CFPBs are sprouting or expanding on both coasts. Governor Cuomo announced several key measures impacting financial services...more