Press Releases

Opinion was misused to claim that fintech payday loans are not “credit” WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Federal Register yesterday published a notice that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a new Advisory Opinion that rescinded an Advisory Opinion issued in 2020 under CFPB Director Kathy Kraninger on whether certain employer-integrated earned wage advances (EWA) constituted “credit” subject to the...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a final rule that would apply existing mortgage protections to Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) loans and require lenders to approve these loans based on a borrower’s ability to repay. PACE loans, often used by homeowners to purchase solar panels, are paid back through property taxes. Anneliese Lederer, senior...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued an overdraft rule that will prevent the country’s very largest banks and credit unions from charging excessive overdraft fees, lowering the cost of most overdraft fees from around $30 down to $5. “This rule provides needed breathing room for financially constrained consumers who are hit hardest by excessive overdraft...

Washington, DC – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has proposed a rule to rein in data brokers that sell Americans' sensitive personal and financial information. The proposed rule would limit the sale of personal identifiers like Social Security and phone numbers collected by certain companies and make sure that financial data, such as a person's income, is only shared...

Washington, D.C.— The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) commended the U.S. Department of Education’s proposed rule on student debt relief based on hardship in a comment letter submitted to Secretary Cardona yesterday evening. The rule aims to provide targeted support to millions of vulnerable Americans who are at the greatest risk of default, including communities of color, older borrowers and...

WASHINGTON, DC - The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) last week released its annual report, showing that the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) has maintained the mutual mortgage insurance fund in a strong financial condition and is doing a good job of serving low-wealth, low-income home buyers. Michael Calhoun, president of the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) released the...

Washington, DC— The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), and the Student Borrower Protection Center (SBPC) submitted comments yesterday urging bank regulators to end bank-fintech partnerships that engage in predatory lending, evade the law, and pose a high risk of unfair, deceptive, or abusive practices and violations of consumer protection laws. Some banks help fintechs to...

Washington, DC— The Department of Education announced a long-anticipated proposal aimed at providing critical debt relief to millions of federal student loan borrowers facing financial hardship last Friday. The proposal introduces two key pathways for relief, a one-time automatic cancellation for borrowers at high risk of default and an application-based process with a holistic review of borrowers’ economic circumstances. If...

WASHINGTON, DC – The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) today released “ A Loan Shark in Your Pocket: The Perils of Earned Wage Advance,” a report on the fast-growing market for cash advance apps and how these loans harm consumers. The report features a dataset of transactions showing rates of reborrowing, loan stacking, and overdraft fees experienced by people borrowing...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a case centered around a federal law that was interpreted by a court for the first time, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) and the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) submitted an amicus brief urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit to correct the lower court’s misinterpretation of a Colorado law, and the...