#consumer data – Federal Financial Analytics

9 03, 2023

DAILY030923

Eliza Allen2023-03-09T16:52:09-05:00March 9th, 2023|2- Daily Briefing|

Barr Emphasizes Steep Barriers to Bank Crypto, Retail CBDC

In remarks today, FRB Vice Chair Barr reiterated that banks should take an extremely cautious approach when engaging with cryptoassets or counterparties and stressed the need to include stablecoins within the regulatory perimeter. For the first time, the Fed made it clear that, while it is open to DLT, smart-contract, and similar payment-system innovations, it is dubious that any will have near-term benefits and all require careful regulatory design.

Expected Battle Lines Form Over CFPB Future

As predicted, today’s HFSC Subcommittee hearing on the CFPB was a partisan and raucous session, with Republicans focusing most strongly on legal and constitutional issues around the Bureau’s funding and enforcement authority and Democrats defending both its legality and effectiveness. Much will come of this in terms of HFSC and floor votes, but we expect no statutory change in this Congress under this President.

Hill Sets Table for Bipartisan Crypto Action

Today’s Digital Assets Subcommittee hearing was considerably more conciliatory than the CFPB session earlier today, with Chairman Hill (R-AR) making clear in his opening statement that he is not launching a partisan attack against the SEC, the banking agencies, or the White House. He hopes instead to press bipartisan legislation, thanking former Chair Waters (D-CA) for her work on stablecoins and emphasizing the need not only for new law there, but also across the array of pending digital-asset questions.

Daily030923.pdf…

24 02, 2023

DAILY022423

Eliza Allen2023-02-24T16:55:41-05:00February 24th, 2023|2- Daily Briefing|

HFSC Starts With A Bang

On Tuesday, HFSC Chairman McHenry (R-NC) honors his commitment to advance significant legislation with what is sure to be a raucous mark-up. Most importantly, Chairman McHenry will bring up a bill yet to be introduced rewriting consumer-data privacy standards.

FHFA New-Product Vetting Delayed

FHFA today pushed back the effective date of its New-Product Rule by sixty days on grounds that more time is needed for the agency and the GSEs to develop the internal processes necessary for compliance. The former effective date was February 27; the new effective date is April 28.

HFSC Set To Lock Horns On Data Privacy

With the opening quote in his release making clear that this will be a partisan fight, HFSC Chairman McHenry (R-NC) formally introduced the privacy legislation that, as noted earlier today, is now set for Tuesday’s mark-up.

CFPB Begins Administrative Adjudication, Speeding Enforcement Actions

The CFPB today finalized new adjudication rules that add administrative adjudication to its usual course of seeking redress in federal district courts. The agency argues that predecessors from which Dodd-Frank drew its responsibilities use administrative adjudication and it is thus within the CFPB’s purview now also to do so.

Daily022423.pdf…

16 02, 2023

DAILY021623

Eliza Allen2023-02-16T16:46:08-05:00February 16th, 2023|2- Daily Briefing|

House GOP Slams Beneficial-Ownership Database

Reiterating longstanding concerns, HFSC Chairman McHenry (R-NC) and National Security, Illicit Finance, and International Financial Institutions Subcommittee Chairman Luetkemeyer (R-MO) submitted a comment letter today strongly opposing FinCEN’s latest beneficial ownership NPR.

House GOP Decries SEC Crypto-Custody Construct

Reflecting GOP concerns about the SEC’s new custody proposal as well as broad GOP objections to much of what Chairman Gensler does, HFSC Republicans today tweeted that the proposal will not ensure sufficient investor safeguards in part because restrictions on bank custody services remain.

Biden Order Reasserts Racial-Equity Agenda

Reiterating much of his last racial-equity executive order, President Biden today issued an order directing federal agencies to establish equity teams and comprehensive strategies to implement the order’s new equity initiatives.

FSB Pledges Further Work on DeFi Financial-Stability Risks

The FSB today released a report finding that DeFi’s financial stability risks are limited but may grow should linkages increase to traditional finance.

CFPB: Unfair Credit-Card Competition Evident Via Data Suppression

Following strongly-worded letters to six credit card lenders last May, the CFPB today concluded that these companies have suppressed payment data for competitive purposes.

FHFA Floats Single-Family ESG Bonds

Building on its equitable-finance initiative, FHFA today released a request for input on the benefits and risks of Fannie and Freddie single family social bonds.

Daily021623.pdf…

10 02, 2023

Al021323

Eliza Allen2023-02-10T17:03:50-05:00February 10th, 2023|3- This Week|

Starting-Gate Signals

As is traditionally the case, Congress kicked off legislative action upon the President’s State of the Union Address even if the response to Mr. Biden was often decidedly untraditional. Last week was the first of what seem sure to be many busy ones and Senate Banking began work on one of its Chairman’s top priorities – housing – ahead of an opening salvo on another high-impact concern – crypto – later this week.

Al021323.pdf…

7 11, 2022

Karen Petrou: The Data-Rights Dilemma: The Balance Between CFPB Despotism and Democracy

Arezou Rafikian2022-11-07T12:17:49-05:00November 7th, 2022|The Vault|

Last week, I despaired of CFPB edicts because I disapprove on principle of despotism no matter how well intentioned. But, as shown in our in-depth analysis of the CFPB’s request for views on consumer data rights, democratic process can also be disastrous. In what purports to be an “outline” of 71 pages and 149 questions often including numerous substantive sub-questions, the Bureau has gone back to its old habit of 1,000-plus page rules sure to do far, far more for lawyers than consumers seeking to better control their own financial destinies.

The outline and Director Chopra’s statements thereon lay out a powerful, persuasive argument about the benefits of data portability to an innovative, competitive, and inclusive retail financial system. I get it, but after that, I’m at a loss.

Here are just a few questions we couldn’t answer about whether the CFPB’s new standards will do what the Bureau wants or heighten consumer exposure to still more cyber, privacy, and financial risk:

Will the third parties gaining control of our account data be covered by new security standards and, if so, will these be enforceable? Will the data third parties gain via whatever authorization process the Bureau demands be deployed not just to answer our questions, but also to empower the already awesome network effects at the biggest quasi-financial companies wholly outside the reach of cross-selling and conflict-of-interest restrictions? Will the products that third parties and their partners select based on our data do us good or ill? For …

7 11, 2022

M110722

Eliza Allen2022-11-07T12:17:31-05:00November 7th, 2022|6- Client Memo|

The Data-Rights Dilemma: The Balance Between CFPB Despotism and Democracy

Last week, I despaired of CFPB edicts because I disapprove on principle of despotism no matter how well intentioned. But, as shown in our in-depth analysis of the CFPB’s request for views on consumer data rights, democratic process can also be disastrous. In what purports to be an “outline” of 71 pages and 149 questions often including numerous substantive sub-questions, the Bureau has gone back to its old habit of 1,000-plus page rules sure to do far, far more for lawyers than consumers seeking to better control their own financial destinies.

m110722.pdf…

3 11, 2022

DAILY110322

Eliza Allen2022-11-03T17:15:32-04:00November 3rd, 2022|2- Daily Briefing|

Gruenberg Backs Bank On

In remarks late yesterday, FDIC Acting Chairman Gruenberg pointed to the importance of Bank On accounts to retain previously un- or under-banked households brought into the system following large government payments early in the pandemic.

ECB Presses Climate-Risk Capital Regs

Moving far ahead of the Fed, the ECB has announced strict plans to ensure that EU banks not only improve governance and express climate-risk stress testing, but also hold sufficient internal-capital allocations for physical and transition risk.

Data Standard-Setters to Come Under CFPB Regs

In remarks late yesterday updating the CFPB’s open-banking rulemaking efforts, Director Chopra indicated that the new consumer-data rules (see forthcoming in-depth FedFin report) will also address how best to set public and private-sector standards to ensure industry-wide fairness and access to critical infrastructure.

IMF Climate-Risk Priorities Include GSIB Buffers

The IMF’s Deputy Managing Director Bo Li today set priorities for central banks and bank regulators addressing financial-system climate resilience.

Daily110322.pdf…

27 10, 2022

DAILY102722

Eliza Allen2022-10-27T16:55:34-04:00October 27th, 2022|2- Daily Briefing|

CFPB Seeks Comment on Consumer Data Rights, Market Power

Following remarks from Director Chopra earlier this week, the CFPB today announced a formal kick-off of its consumer data-rights rulemaking.

Gruenberg Reminds Markets of TLGP Backstops at Time of Liquidity Stress

In remarks today, Acting FDIC Chairman Gruenberg stoutly defended the agency’s final rule hiking DIF premiums (see Client Report DEPOSITINSURANCE115).

Warren Reignites Anti-Zelle Campaign

In another appeal to the CFPB to tackle Zelle, Sen. Warren (D-MA) today sent a letter to Director Chopra calling on the Bureau to increase consumer protections in peer-to-peer lending platforms and curtail what she again describes as “rampant” fraud.

Democratic Pressures Grow Against Fed Rate Hikes

Adding to critiques from Sens. Brown (D-OH) and Warren (D-MA), Sen. Hickenlooper (D-CO) today called on the Fed to halt interest-rate increases.

Fed Study Details QE Alternatives, Expanded Fed Role

A new FRB staff paper explores the past, present, and future as an approach to achieving the Fed’s increasingly-problematic monetary-policy transmission: “funding for lending.”

Daily102722.pdf…

25 10, 2022

DAILY102522

Eliza Allen2022-10-25T17:08:46-04:00October 25th, 2022|2- Daily Briefing|

Setting Stage for US Action, UK Regulators Target Bigtech Consumer-Finance Market Power

Focusing principally on competition, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) today released a discussion paper investigating bigtech’s entry into payments, deposit, consumer-credit, and insurance.

With Yellen Backing, SEC Central-Clearing NPR Advances

The Federal Register today includes the SEC’s proposal requiring that market clearinghouses submit certain secondary-market transactions for clearing along with the small percentage now already centrally-cleared.

FDIC Reports Significant Financial Inclusion Progress

Showing significant improvements in financial inclusion, the FDIC today released its biennial under- and unbanked household survey.

CFPB to Require Almost-Open Banking

At long last and as recently promised, the CFPB later this week will start a rulemaking process that would ultimately require financial institutions to share personal data with a consumer upon his or her request.

Democrats Get Ready To Blame The Fed

Continuing progressive critiques of the FOMC’s anti-inflation fight, Senate Banking Chairman Brown (D-OH) has written to FRB Chairman Powell sharply protesting current Fed policy.

Daily102522.pdf…

6 09, 2022

DAILY090622

Eliza Allen2022-12-20T16:15:03-05:00September 6th, 2022|2- Daily Briefing|

BIS Staff: Banks Have Power Over Bigtech, But We’re Not So Sure

A new paper from BIS staff argues that bigtech firms have so much power over small-and-medium sized enterprises (SMEs) using their networks that they must “self-limit” this to continue to grow, leading them to share data with banks that fund loans via cheap deposits. We find the paper puzzling given its description of the captive ecosystem in which bigtechs can readily exploit data unavailable to banks to set credit terms and also enforce loan agreements by virtue of their power to exclude an SME from a vital source of customers.

CFPB’s Sweeping Data-Protection Standards Now Effective

Today’s Federal Register includes the CFPB’s circular on insufficient data protections and security; the circular is now effective. As noted (see FSM Report INFOSEC28), the circular states that inadequate consumer-data safeguards may constitute a breach of unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices (UDAAP) protection standards subject to Bureau enforcement. It notably expands the Bureau’s legal interpretations of UDAAP, its authority over nonbanks, and its broad reading of “service providers.”

OCC Prioritizes Community Banks

The OCC today released its five-year strategic plan. It focuses on staffing, service, and administrative issues, but also briefly notes policy priorities. These include advancing financial inclusion and literacy, deepening collaboration with other regulators, reinforcing and minimizing the regulatory burden on community banks, and developing guidance to facilitate community banks’ transition to digital banking.

Daily090622.pdf…