The bureau recently recognized its 10th anniversary, which has at least one member of Congress calling for a change when new leadership takes over.
7/30/2021 10:00
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., considered an early backer of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau if not the mind behind its creation in 2011, thinks more needs to be done when it comes to enforcement priorities going forward, according to a blog post from ACA International member firm Troutman Pepper.
In remarks at a recent event cohosted by various leading consumer advocacy groups, Warren highlighted several areas that may garner additional attention from the CFPB in the near future, especially if the Senate confirms Rohit Chopra, President Biden’s nominee for director,” Troutman Pepper reports. “In particular, Warren mentioned bank overdraft fees, predatory auto lending, and cryptocurrency as practices ripe for CFPB enforcement.”
Congressional committees have met recently on cryptocurrencies and other digital currencies, which remain mostly unregulated markets.
“To the extent the CFPB delves into consumer protection in this arena, it will likely have to coordinate with these other federal agencies,” Troutman Pepper reports. “As the CFPB revisits these and other enforcement priorities, any entity subject to CFPB enforcement should keep a close watch on the agency’s current enforcement actions and consent orders, as well as any research reports issued by the agency, to identify any particular areas of interest.”
Meanwhile, a decision is pending on Rohit Chopra’s nomination as director of the CFPB. Acting Director David Uejio said in a recent blog post on the CFPB’s 10th anniversary that its enforcement and supervisory efforts have resulted in approximately $14.4 billion in relief for consumers and $1.7 billion in civil penalties.
While the bureau and industry stakeholders await a decision on the director position, there are staff changes and several key vacancies in the bureau’s top departments and questions on the matter from members of Congress remain unanswered, ACA International previously reported.
Former director Kathy Kraninger also recently weighed in on the future of the bureau.
Staff communication and regulatory support of industry innovation while protecting consumers should be two of the bureau’s the top priorities under new leadership, Kraninger said in a discussion with Brian Johnson, a former deputy director at the bureau, in an event hosted by the Federalist Society, ACA previously reported.
For more on the history of the CFPB and its 10-year anniversary, read ACA Vice President and Senior Counsel of Federal Advocacy Leah Dempsey’s report in the June issue of Collector magazine.