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.

Michigan Attorney General Announces Default Judgment Against Automobile Title Loan Company Over Alleged Usurious Loans

On June 8, 2016, the Michigan Attorney General announced that a Michigan court entered a default judgment and permanent injunction against an automobile title loan company over alleged usurious loans that violated the Michigan Consumer Protection Act.  According to the Attorney General, the company charged usurious interest rates on automobile title loans, engaged…

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Department of Housing and Urban Development Announces Settlement with National Bank over Alleged Discriminatory Lending Practices

On June 8, 2016, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced it entered into a settlement agreement with a national bank over allegations the bank engaged in discriminatory lending practices in violation of the Fair Housing Act. According to HUD, the bank discriminated against African American, Latino American and…

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Colorado Attorney General Announces Lenders Will Return $8 Million to Consumers over Alleged Usurious Loans

On June 8, 2016, the Colorado Attorney General announced that several national lenders were ordered to pay approximately $8 million in restitution to Colorado consumers over alleged usurious loans, which violated Colorado’s Consumer Protection Act. The lenders allegedly originated loans with interest rates that reached as high as 355%. In…

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CFPB Files Lawsuit Against Payment Processor Over Alleged Unauthorized Withdrawals from Consumer Accounts

On June 6, 2016, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced it filed a lawsuit against a third-party payment processor and two of the company’s executives over allegations the company permitted unauthorized withdrawals from consumer accounts, in violation of the Dodd-Frank Consumer Protection Act. The company facilitated ACH payment transactions between…

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West Virginia Attorney General Announces Settlement with Online Lender Over Alleged Usurious Loans

On June 6, 2016, the West Virginia Attorney General announced a settlement with a regional online lender over allegations that the lender’s business practices violated West Virginia’s Consumer Credit and Protection Act. The company markets and sells online installment loans, through an alleged “bank-partnership model.” Under the bank-partnership model, a company partners…

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Q1 2016 Sees Continued Focus on Mortgages, Fair Lending, and CFPB Enforcement (Interactive Charts Inside)

*Editor’s Note:  This post originally appeared on our sister blog, Consumer Finance Enforcement Watch.  Visit CFEW for more real-time reporting and data analytics on the full range of public federal and state consumer finance enforcement activity and the latest updates to our interactive charts.* For the first quarter of 2016, Consumer Finance…

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CFPB Releases 2016 Rulemaking Agenda

On May 18, 2016, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced its Spring 2016 Rulemaking Agenda, setting forth its current initiatives. In its latest installment of the semi-annual update, the Bureau highlighted its recent (or imminent) activity in several high-profile areas, including arbitration and payday lending.  Below are highlights of…

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CFPB Releases Report on Single-Payment Vehicle Title Loans

Earlier this month, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a report analyzing consumer usage and default patterns for certain single-payment vehicle title loans (the “Report”).  Vehicle title loans are loans issued to borrowers by non-depository lenders in exchange for a security interest in their vehicles.  A unique aspect of vehicle…

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Eleventh Circuit Appellate Panel Finds FDCPA Claims Not Preempted by the Bankruptcy Code on Time Barred Debts

In an opinion issued May 24th in two consolidated cases, a federal appellate panel for the Eleventh Circuit could not find an “irreconcilable conflict” between the Bankruptcy Code and the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (“FDCPA”) as determined by the district court in a putative class action brought by bankruptcy debtors…

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Federal Reserve Announces Enforcement Action Against State Bank for Alleged Violation of the National Flood Insurance Act

On May 17, the Federal Reserve announced the execution of a settlement agreement with a state bank resolving alleged violations of the National Flood Insurance Act (“NFIA”), 42 U.S.C. § 4012a(f), and Regulation H, 12 C.F.R. part 208.  The Board of Governors asserted that where a pattern or practice of violations of the NFIA is found, civil…

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Treasury Department Weighs in on Online Marketplace Lending

On May 10, 2016, the U.S. Treasury Department released a white paper entitled, “Opportunities and Challenges in Online Marketplace Lending.”  The white paper is the result of a request for information that elicited more than 100 industry responses, and it reviews the benefits and risks of online marketplace lending before making…

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Divided Supreme Court Vacates Ninth Circuit Decision in Spokeo, Remands for Further Proceedings

Today, the Supreme Court released its opinion in Spokeo v. Robins, vacating the Ninth Circuit’s decision and remanding the case for further proceedings.  Our earlier posts on the case (here, here, and here) provide more detailed background on the facts of the case, but by way of short introduction, Spokeo…

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