Goodwin’s Consumer Finance Insights (CFI) monitors, reports, and analyzes the latest legal news, activity, and developments impacting the consumer finance industry. Consumer financial services companies—whether banks, fintechs, nonbank and alternative lenders, payment providers, or industry vendors or service providers, like digital advertisers and lead generators—face a constantly shifting and maturing regulatory and legal landscape. Growing from the Financial Crisis, today more than any time in history the consumer finance industry must confront a robust and growing body of industry legislation and regulation, all while under the microscope of sophisticated enforcers, like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and state regulators and attorneys general. It is critical for in-house and outside corporate counsel, compliance departments, and business executives to stay informed and aware of these developments to navigate institutional, reputational, and legal risks. Goodwin’s CFI is a singular source of the most recent industry news and latest enforcement activity for you to leverage. Here, you will find links to original enforcement documents, enforcement activity statistics, and reports, analysis, and commentary from Goodwin’s leading Consumer Financial Services Litigation and Enforcement practitioners.

CFPB Enters Into Consent Order with For-Profit Coding School

Piggy Bank with a Graduation Cap

​On April 17, 2024, the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced ​that it had entered into a consent order​ with BloomTech Inc., d/b/a Bloom Institute of Technology (BloomTech), and BloomTech’s CEO, Austen Allred, resolving allegations that the company’s practices with respect to income-share agreements (ISAs) violated various consumer protection statutes.  BloomTech, formerly known…

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Interpretable Algorithms as a Potential Solution to CFPB’s Guidance on AI-driven Credit Denials

In September 2023, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued guidance on the use of artificial intelligence in issuing credit denials, a prevalent practice among lenders.  The CFPB explained that when denying a credit application, lenders must provide a substantive reason behind the denial.  The guidance further explains that the…

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FinTech Companies Settle PPP-related Claims with FTC

On March 18, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced ​that it ​entered into proposed orders with two fintech firms, resolving allegations of misconduct tied to the firms’ involvement in federal COVID-19 Paycheck Protection Programs (PPP).  Specifically, the proposed orders resolve allegations that the firms violated Section 5(a) of the FTC Act,…

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Chamber of Commerce Sues CFPB To Eliminate or Enjoin $8 Late Fee Cap

Last week, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (Chamber) joined five other trade associations to sue the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and its director Rohit Chopra in Texas Federal District Court, seeking a court order declaring a recent CFPB rule arbitrary and capricious, vacating the rule, and enjoining its enforcement. In…

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West Virginia Proposes Mini-TCPA Law

In late January, the West Virginia Legislature introduced two bills aiming to regulate and expand the telemarketing laws in West Virginia. The first bill, House Bill 4886, would amend the Code of West Virginia by adding a new section that establishes a $1000 civil administrative penalty for each instance that…

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CFPB Revises Supervisory Appeals Process

On February 16, 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) announced that it is updating its internal supervisory appeals process for institutions seeking to appeal a compliance rating or an adverse material finding.  If a supervised entity disagrees with a compliance rating or any other adverse finding after…

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California DFPI Settles with Financial Services Company Over Customer Service Complaints

On February 27, 2024, the California Department of  Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) announced ​that it entered into a consent order with a San Francisco-based financial services company resolving allegations that​​ the company’s handling of consumer complaints violated California’s Consumer Financial Protection Law (CCF​PL)​.  The company, which partners with regional banks to provide mobile…

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FCC Confirms A.I.-Generated Robocall Voices Are “Artificial” under the TCPA

Last week, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a Declaratory Ruling stating that existing federal regulations related to using “an artificial or prerecorded voice” to deliver a telephone message, also encompass voices generated by artificial intelligence (AI).  The ruling does not expand prohibitions or definitions set forth in the applicable…

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California Federal Court Bans Mortgage Operators as Result of Joint FTC and DFPI Case

​On February 2, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California issued an order permanently banning several companies and their owners from the telemarketing and debt relief businesses and requiring them to pay approximately $19 million in restitution and civil money penalties​.  This order came as a…

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CFPB Announces New Proposed Rule to Target Junk Fees

On January 24, 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced a new proposed rule as part of the CFPB’s broader strategy of targeting junk fees.  This proposed rule would “prohibit non-sufficient funds (NSF) fees on transactions that financial institutions decline in real time.” These fees apply to “transactions declined…

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Illinois Federal Court Issues Injunction and $28.7 Million Judgment Against Telemarketing Operation

On January 31, the Federal Trade Commission announced that a federal court in Illinois entered final orders against a telemarketing company and its owners as part of a judgment against an allegedly illegal telemarketing scheme. In the lawsuit, the FTC accused the defendants of making millions of illegal, unsolicited calls to people who were…

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FTC Reaches Settlement With Cash Advance Company

On January 24, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it had reached a settlement with an online cash advance provider and its co-founders resolving claims that the company violated the FTC Act, the Restore Online Shopper’s Confidence Act (ROSCA), and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA),  by engaging in allegedly deceptive marketing tactics and…

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California Department of Financial Protection Issues Consent Order Against Fintech Company

On January 9, 2024, the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) announced that it entered into a consent order with a Delaware fintech company that provided California consumers with access to an internet-based platform for merchants to offer installment payments for the purchase of outdoor-adventure equipment. According to the consent order, since at…

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