On January 9, 2025, 51 State Financial Regulatory Agencies (the “Agencies”) announced a coordinated consent order and settlement agreement with nonbank mortgage servicing companies (the “Companies”). This action came following a data breach that impacted 5.8 million customers, allegedly due to deficient cybersecurity practices, and for lack of cooperation with state regulators. The Companies are licensed as…
On January 7, 2025, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) filed a complaint against a nationwide consumer reporting agency (“Agency”) under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) and the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 (“CFPA”). The CFPB claims that the Agency inadequately reinvestigated consumer disputes that challenged the information found in consumer…
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) filed a complaint against a manufactured home loan company (the “Company”) on January 6, 2025, alleging that it originates loans that borrowers are unlikely to be able to repay in order to sell more homes, resulting in additional fees, penalties, and sometimes the loss of their…
In late 2024, the Massachusetts Division of Banks (the “Division”) announced consent orders with four auto finance companies resolving allegations of improper repossession of motor vehicles. On November 4, 2024, the Division announced that it had entered into a consent order with a motor vehicle sales finance company that also operates as…
On December 31, 2024, the Massachusetts Commissioner of Banks entered into a consent order with a third party loan servicer (the “Company”), for allegedly engaging in the business of loan servicing in Massachusetts without the appropriate registration. The Company is a California corporation operating in Massachusetts. While records show that the Company submitted…
In December 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) finalized a rule to update regulatory exemptions of overdraft loans from lending laws. According to the Bureau, this is a major step in the CFPB’s efforts to curb junk fees. Per the CFPB, for decades, overdraft loans have not only added…
On December 23, 2024, The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) announced a consent order with a crypto lending platform (the Company) that provides financial services to retail and institutional customers to resolve the Department’s investigation into the Company’s lending program. The DFPI alleged that the Company breached the California…
In December 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) rolled out a series of important measures aimed at addressing potential misconduct in the credit card industry, improving consumer protections, and promoting transparency and competition in the market. The Bureau’s initiatives come at a time when credit card usage is peaking…
On December 9, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced it received a temporary restraining order against a student loan servicer over allegations the servicer and its operator misled consumers into thinking they were receiving student debt relief and forgiveness. According to the FTC’s complaint, the Nevada-based servicer and its operator made telemarking calls and…
On December 6, 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that it had filed suit against a bank subsidiary of a financial services company for allegedly disconnecting customer service calls, charging illegal ATM fees, misleading fraud victims, imposing illegal terms of service on consumers seeking to stop payments, failing to investigate account…
On December 5, 2024, the CFPB announced that it had entered into a proposed stipulated final judgment and order with a student lender and its investors, resolving allegations that the student lender had violated the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA), the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), and Regulation Z through deceptive advertising and disclosures. In…
On December 4, 2024, the CFPB announced that it entered into a proposed stipulated judgment with a student loan servicer and its owner, resolving allegations that the student loan servicer violated the Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR) and the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA). According to the judgment, the servicer at issue and its owner illegally…
On Tuesday, November 26, the Minnesota Attorney General’s office (AG) announced it filed a consent order to resolve allegations that online lenders were charging interest on loans in excess of the amounts prescribed under Minnesota usury laws. Under the consent order, over $1 million in allegedly illegal loans were discharged….
On October 17, 2024, the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that it had filed an action in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against an online lender of student loans, its wholly-owned subsidiaries, and the owners and operators of those entities (collectively, the Company)…
On November 19, 2024, the District of Columbia’s Attorney General (DC AG) announced that it had filed a complaint in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia against an online lender for alleged violations of the District of Columbia Consumer Protection Procedures Act (CPPA). According to the DC AG’s complaint, the company, which operates both a website and…
On November 7, 2024, the CFPB announced that it had entered into a consent order with a major credit union resolving allegations that the credit union improperly assessed overdraft fees against consumers. The credit union agreed to pay nearly $95 million to resolve the allegations. In its consent order, the CFPB alleged that…
On November 7, 2024, the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) announced that it had entered into a settlement agreement with a cryptocurrency lender resolving allegations that the lender violated the California Financing Law (“CFL”). This action follows an examination by the DFPI in which the Department found that the crypto lender violated the CFL by (1) failing to consider…
On November 5, 2024, the FTC announced that it had filed suit against a California-based online cash advance provider for allegedly deceptive and misleading advertisements and representations, in violation of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 45(a), and the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (“ROSCA”), 15 U.S.C. § 8403.z According to…
On November 4, 2024, the FTC announced that it had filed suit against a Georgia-based debt collector for engaging in allegedly deceptive and abusive debt collection practices, in violation of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 45(a), the FDCPA, 15 U.S.C. §§ 1692-1692p, and its associated Regulation F, 12 C.F.R. Part 1006, and the Gramm-Leach-Bliley…
On November 4, 2024, the Massachusetts Commissioner of Banks (the “Commissioner”) entered into a consent order with a licensed motor vehicle sales finance company (the “Company”) in relation to its retail installment contracts and their level of compliance with relevant Massachusetts and federal statutes. An examination carried out by the Commissioner regarding the Company and…