On November 14, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) filed a significant consent order against Global Tel Link Corporation (GTL), a company that provides communication and financial services to correctional facilities. The CFPB found that GTL, along with its subsidiaries Telmate, LLC and TouchPay Holdings, LLC, engaged in illegal practices that adversely affected incarcerated individuals and their friends and families.
On November 13, Representative Gary J. Palmer (R-AL) introduced House Joint Resolution 220, which seeks congressional disapproval of an advisory opinion published by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) relating to medical debt collection practices.
On November 12, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit denied a request from Community Financial Services Association of America (CFSA) and the Consumer Services Alliance of Texas to reopen their legal challenge against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) payday loan rule. This decision effectively clears the path for the rule to be implemented.
On November 13, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) released a pilot study titled “Matched-Pair Testing in Small Business Lending Markets” highlighting what the CFPB believes were two statistically significant disparities in the treatment of Black and white small business owners seeking loans. First, the secret shopping study indicated that Black entrepreneurs were less encouraged by small business lenders to apply for loans. Specifically, such lenders expressed interest in obtaining loan applications from 40% of white participants, but only 23% of Black participants. Second, the study found that Black participants were more frequently steered toward alternative financing products — such as business credit cards or real estate-secured loans — compared to their white counterparts with similar or weaker business credit profiles. Specifically, non-requested or alternative credit products were discussed with 59% of Black participants, compared to 39% of white participants.
On November 1, ACA International, LLC and Collection Bureau Services, Inc. filed a lawsuit against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) and Director Rohit Chopra, challenging the CFPB’s recent advisory opinion on medical debt collection practices. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, challenges the CFPB’s authority and the procedural validity of the advisory opinion. The plaintiffs are seeking an order vacating the advisory opinion and a stay of the effective date pending the conclusion of the case.
In a significant development, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) has finally reached a settlement with Townstone Financial, Inc. (Townstone) in the first redlining case brought against a nonbank mortgage lender and broker. This settlement follows the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals’ pivotal decision in favor of the CFPB that expanded the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) to include protections for prospective applicants who may be discouraged from applying for credit. The settlement marks a resolution of protracted litigation that began in 2020 when the CFPB sued Townstone by accusing the company of redlining practices.
On October 31, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals granted the appellants’ motion to expedite the appeal in Texas Bankers Association v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The suit brought by several trade associations challenges the CFPB’s Final Rule under § 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Act, the “Small Business Lending Data Collection Rule” (Final Rule). The court scheduled oral argument for February 3, 2025. However, in that same order, the court denied appellants’ motion for a temporary stay of the Final Rule’s compliance dates, stating that the motion for a stay pending appeal “remained pending.” This means that the compliance dates set forth in the CFPB’s Interim Final Rule remain for now, with the earliest date for the largest lenders being July 18, 2025.
Yesterday, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) issued its final rule on personal financial data rights, purportedly aimed at enhancing consumer control over their financial data and promoting competition in the financial services industry. According to the Bureau’s press release, “[t]he rule requires financial institutions, credit card issuers, and other financial providers to unlock an individual’s personal financial data and transfer it to another provider at the consumer’s request for free… help[ing] lower prices on loans and improve customer service across payments, credit, and banking markets.” Later that same day, a complaint was filed challenging the Bureau’s authority.
According to a recent report by WebRecon, court filings under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), and Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and complaints filed with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) were up for the month. Year-to-date everything is up compared to 2023.
On October 15, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that they reached a settlement with Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation (Fairway). This settlement addresses allegations of redlining in majority-Black neighborhoods in Birmingham, Alabama. Fairway is headquartered in Madison, WI, but operates under the trade name MortgageBanc in the Birmingham area. Fairway, the third-largest mortgage lender in the United States, is now the second non-bank mortgage company to enter into a redlining settlement.