On February 25, a federal judge in the United District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky approved a joint motion between the CFPB and banking trade groups to pause litigation over the agency’s 1033 open banking rule. The lawsuit challenges the CFPB’s rule requiring banks to allow consumers to share deposit and credit card account information with third-party fintech providers.Continue Reading Federal Court Pauses Open Banking Rule Litigation
On February 19, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order (the “Order”) mandating that independent agencies, including the SEC, the FCC, and the FTC, submit proposed regulations for presidential review before finalization. The order marks a significant shift in the regulatory process, altering the long-standing autonomy of these agencies by subjecting them to executive oversight.Continue Reading Trump Executive Order Requires Independent Agencies to Submit Regulations for Presidential Review
On February 19, a federal magistrate judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida issued a report and recommendation rejecting a trade group’s challenge to the CFPB’s small business lending data rule. The ruling found that merchant cash advances lawfully fall within the scope of the rule. The trade group’s lawsuit sought to exclude merchant cash advances from the rule, arguing, among other things, that such transactions do not constitute “credit” under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (the “ECOA”) and that the rule was arbitrary and capricious, in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act.Continue Reading CFPB Small Business Lending Data Rule Survives Challenge in Federal Court
On February 6, 2025, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals struck down the FCC’s one-to-one consent rule (previously discussed here). Applying the Supreme Court’s decision in Loper Bright Enters. v. Raimondo, the Eleventh Circuit ruled that the FCC exceeded its legal authority by enforcing additional consent restrictions not explicitly outlined in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).Continue Reading Eleventh Circuit Strikes Down One-to-One Consent Rule
On January 24, the FCC issued an order postponing the effective date of its one-to-one consent rule. The rule, which would have required companies to obtain individual consent for each marketing partner before sharing customer data, was originally slated to go into effect on January 27, 2025. However, the FCC’s order has put the rule on hold until at least January 26, 2026, unless a court ruling dictates an earlier implementation date.Continue Reading Delays Implementation of One-to-One Consent Rule
On January 20, President Trump issued a memorandum instituting a regulatory freeze pending review. This action, a common practice for new administrations, directs federal agencies to halt any new rulemaking until agency heads appointed by the incoming president have reviewed and approved pending regulations. The freeze has significant implications for the financial services industry.Continue Reading Trump Administration Issues Regulatory Freeze
On January 2, 2025, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) proposed an interpretive rule under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) and Regulation E to clarify how emerging payment systems, such as those used in video games, esports betting, and the use of stablecoin, fit within the existing regulatory framework. According to the Bureau, their actions are part of a broader effort to ensure that companies offering these types of “financial products” have mechanisms in place to protect consumers against hacking attempts, account theft, scams, and unauthorized transactions. It is the CFPB’s belief that absent these protections, consumers may face challenges vindicating their rights in the event of unauthorized transfers or errors.Continue Reading CFPB Proposes Interpretive Rule on Emerging Payment Mechanisms Under EFTA
On December 18, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit heard arguments in Insurance Marketing Coalition Limited (“IMC”) v. Federal Communications Commission, which was brought by the marketing trade association to challenge the FCC’s December 2023 one-to-one consent rule, which is slated to go into effect on January 27, 2025. Under the new rule promulgated under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, the FCC has modified the definition of “express written consent” and seeks to require comparison shopping websites and other marketers to obtain a consumer’s prior written consent to receive calls and texts from one marketing partner at a time. Continue Reading Federal Court of Appeals Considers Challenge to FCC’s One-to-One Consent Rule
On November 26, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned sanctions imposed by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) against a decentralized cryptocurrency mixing service (a blockchain-based technology used to enable transaction anonymity) accused of facilitating money laundering.Continue Reading Fifth Circuit Overturns OFAC Sanctions on Blockchain-based Privacy Technology
On February 15, Senators Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Jack Reed (D-RI) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) sent a letter to a leading payment app seeking clarification of its reimbursement policy for victims of imposter scams. Calling its protocol for reporting fraud and scams “unnecessarily complicated,” the Senators asked the payment app to add more categories of scams for which users can be reimbursed, and to streamline its process for reporting fraud, scams, and unauthorized transactions. The Senators noted that the company’s policy did not make clear which types of scams would qualify for reimbursement or what steps consumers needed to take to exercise their rights under its policy. The Senator’s pressed the payment app to make public whether banks and credit unions are required to reimburse customers who are victims of qualifying imposter scams. The Senators asked for responses to their questions by March 13, 2024.Continue Reading Congress Continues to Pressure Payment Apps to Change their Fraud Policies
On November 2, the FTC entered into a settlement agreement with a Manhattan-based fintech company for $18 million over alleged deceptively marketed cash advances to consumers and impeding customers’ ability to cancel memberships. The FTC alleged that the fintech company violated the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (ROSCA).Continue Reading FTC Settles with Fintech for $18M over Deceptive Cash Transfers and Difficult-to-Cancel Memberships