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OCC Revises Civil Money Penalty Manual

The U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) announced revisions to its civil money penalty (CMP) manual on November 29, 2022. This may have important implications for smaller banks that have entered into partnerships with fintech companies. The updated manual will go into effect on January 1…

Weekly Fintech Focus

  • On November 16, 2022, the U.S. Department of the Treasury (USDT) released a new report titled “Assessing Impacts of New Entrant Non-bank Firms on Competition in Consumer Finance Markets.” The report calls for enhanced oversight of the consumer financial activities of non-bank firms (particularly bank-fintech relationships) and offers several recommendations that aim
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Consumer Protection Agencies Target Junk Fees and Dark Patterns for Enforcement Action and Rulemaking

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) are cracking down on the assessment of junk fees and the use of dark patterns, which harm consumers. Recently, the CFPB sued an online event registration company for its…

Weekly Fintech Focus

  • FTC explains that merchants using BNPL services are also subject to consumer protection obligations.
  • CFPB ends its no-action letter and compliance sandbox policies.
  • CFPB sues an online lender for Military Lending Act violations related to the lender’s membership fees.

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Continue Reading Fintech Legal Report—Week of September 30, 2022

CFPB Highlights Emerging Risks in the Convergence of Payments and Commerce

On August 4, 2022, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a report on the emerging risks consumers face in the growing presence of new products that blur the line between payments and commerce, namely: buy now, pay later (BNPL) offerings; embedded commerce; and integrated “super apps.” Specifically:…

Continue Reading Fintech Legal Report—Week of August 19, 2022

Weekly Fintech Focus

  • Democratic senators urge CFPB to focus on bank liability for fraud occurring on P2P payment platforms.
  • CFPB and OCC issue $225M fine to a bank for failures related to unemployment benefits payments.
  • UK financial regulators open consultation on oversight of financial institutions’ third-party service providers.

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Continue Reading Fintech Legal Report—Week of July 22, 2022

Weekly Fintech Focus

  • The CFPB terminates a no-action letter with an AI credit underwriter.
  • A CFPB circular confirms that AI underwriting models are subject to anti-discrimination laws including adverse action notices.
  • BNPL companies and credit bureaus face urging by the CFPB to properly report consumer information.
  • The CFPB launches an initiative to improve customer service at big banks.

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Continue Reading Fintech Legal Report—Week of June 17, 2022