Newsletters

08.16.18

DOJ Expands FCPA Self-Reporting Protections to Successor Companies

Building on its efforts to encourage self-reporting of Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) violations, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced it will extend protections to voluntary reporting successor companies for preacquisition violations of the target company.


08.03.18

OCC to Accept Fintech Charter Applications. What Happens Next?

In a decision long anticipated by the fintech industry and opposed by multiple state regulators, on July 31 the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) announced it will accept applications for special purpose national bank charters for fintech companies.


08.02.18

FTC Seeks Greater Data Security, Privacy Authority

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is seeking more power to protect consumers and promote competition. In testimony before Congress, the FTC chair and the associate director for the Division of Privacy and Identity Protection discussed the agency’s enforcement efforts and assured lawmakers ...


08.02.18

CFPB News: New Innovations Office, ‘Gentler’ Consent Orders

The kinder, gentler Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (CFPB) has created a new office focused on emerging technology, announced a pair of consent orders that include minimal financial penalties, and continued to fend off constitutional challenges in federal court.


08.02.18

New York’s DFS Report Could Yield Increased Regulation

Based on a law requiring a survey of online lending in the state, New York’s Department of Financial Services (DFS) issued a report on the methods of operation, lending practices, and risks and benefits of online lending, including recommendations that could lead to additional regulation of ...


08.02.18

California Continues Oversight of Student Loan Servicers

Following in the recent footsteps of the California attorney general’s lawsuit against the country’s largest student loan servicer, the state’s Department of Business Oversight (DBO) sent letters to 12 servicers seeking information about why they have not applied for licenses ...


08.02.18

ALJs Could Get Political With New Executive Order

The new executive order (EO) granting agency chiefs the power to hire administrative law judges (ALJs) according to their own standards—and eliminating the exam and competitive hiring process formerly in place—could turn the position of ALJ into a politicized one, critics of the move ...


08.02.18

One District Judge Says Ringless Voicemails Are TCPA ‘Calls’

A ringless voicemail message (RVM)—technology that allows messages to be left directly on a consumer’s cell phone without requiring the consumer to answer—can be a handy communication tool for any business, but particularly so for financial services companies concerned with ...


07.18.18

States Work to Bring Banking Services to Marijuana Businesses

States are pushing to allow or encourage banking services to be provided to marijuana-related businesses, with efforts spreading from California to New York.


07.18.18

California Considering Bill to Require Disclosures for Small Business Lending

In new California commercial financing-related legislation, a pending state bill would mandate specified disclosures for small business lending, while a recently passed ordinance in Los Angeles will require banks doing business with the city to reveal if they use sales goals.