CFPB Takes Action to Stop Illegal Junk Fees in Mortgage Servicing
April 24, 2024 / Source: CFPB
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) today published an edition of Supervisory Highlights describing the agency’s actions to combat junk fees charged by mortgage servicers, as well as other illegal practices. CFPB examinations found servicers charging illegal junk fees, such as prohibited property inspection fees; sending deceptive notices to homeowners; and violating loss mitigation rules…
Overdraft/NSF Revenue in 2023 down more than 50% versus pre-pandemic levels, saving consumers over $6 billion annually
April 24, 2024 / Source: CFPB
The CFPB continues to closely monitor trends in overdraft/non-sufficient funds (NSF) fee revenue and practices. With 2023 data now available, we can compare overdraft and NSF revenue last year to 2022, when many banks changed their fee policies, and to pre-pandemic levels. Our most recent analysis finds the following: Since the CFPB heightened its supervisory…
Federal Reserve Board announces it will extend through May 31, 2024, the public comment period for the application by Capital One Financial Corporation to acquire Discover Financial Services
April 24, 2024 / Source: FRB
The Federal Reserve Board on Wednesday announced it will extend through May 31, 2024, the public comment period for the application by Capital One Financial Corporation of McLean, Virginia, to acquire Discover Financial Services of Riverwoods, Illinois. The comment period is being extended to provide additional time for interested parties to comment on the proposal….
G7 Cyber Expert Group Conducts Cross-Border Coordination Exercise in the Financial Sector
April 23, 2024 / Source: Treasury
WASHINGTON — The G7 Cyber Expert Group completed a cross-border coordination exercise on 17 April 2024. G7 authorities routinely exercise to ensure they can effectively coordinate and communicate their response in the event of a widespread cyber incident affecting the financial system. The primary objective of the exercise was to strengthen the ability of G7 financial…
Treasury Designates Iranian Cyber Actors Targeting U.S. Companies and Government Agencies
April 23, 2024 / Source: Treasury
WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned two companies and four individuals involved in malicious cyber activity on behalf of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Cyber Electronic Command (IRGC-CEC). These actors targeted more than a dozen U.S. companies and government entities through cyber operations, including…
HUD and Terner Housing Innovation Labs Advance Affordable Housing Initiatives
April 23, 2024 / Source: HUD
DETROIT – Last week, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Terner Labs cohosted an event in Detroit, Michigan, uniting leaders from the public sector, housing experts, researchers, and technologists for the third iteration of their Housing & Technology Symposium series. HUD leaders also traveled to Minneapolis, Minnesota to highlight innovative affordable housing partnerships. “These…
FinCEN Reminds Financial Institutions to Remain Vigilant to Environmental Crimes
April 22, 2024 / Source: FinCEN
WASHINGTON—As the nation reflects on the many ways to protect our environment this Earth Day, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) reminds financial institutions to remain vigilant in identifying and reporting suspicious activity related to environmental crimes. Environmental crimes frequently involve transnational criminal activity related to several of FinCEN’s Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of…
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Renewal: Comment Request; Renewal without Change of the of Anti-Money Laundering Programs for Certain Financial Institutions
April 22, 2024 / Source: FinCEN
Release Date April 22, 2024 Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Renewal: Comment Request; Re… Action Type Notice and Request for Comment, Forms Renewal/Update
HUD Announces Final Rule that will Protect Communities from Flooding Events and Rising Insurance Costs
April 22, 2024 / Source: HUD
WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published a Federal Flood Risk Management Standard (FFRMS) final rule in the Federal Register to help communities prepare for and reduce flood damage. This rule aims to protect communities from flood risk, heavy storms, increased frequency of severe weather events and disasters, changes in development patterns,…
HUD Officials Highlight Climate Resilience Funding Opportunities in Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands
April 21, 2024 / Source: HUD
PUERTO RICO – This week, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) hosted a bilingual roundtable about HUD’s Green and Resilient Retrofit Program (GRRP) for stakeholders in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The roundtable was attended by over 150 participants who learned about the GRRP and other federal funding sources for upgrading and renovating…
Treasury Designates Entities Involved in Raising Funds for Violent Extremists in the West Bank
April 21, 2024 / Source: Treasury
WASHINGTON — Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions on two entities for their roles in establishing fundraising campaigns on behalf of Yinon Levi (Levi) and David Chai Chasdai (Chasdai), two violent extremists who were sanctioned on February 1, 2024 in connection with violence in the West Bank. The fundraising…
FinCEN Issues Analysis on Elder Financial Exploitation
April 18, 2024 / Source: FinCEN
Financial Institutions Report $27 Billion in Elder Financial Exploitation Suspicious Activity in One-Year Period WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued a Financial Trend Analysis today focusing on patterns and trends identified in Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) data linked to Elder Financial Exploitation (EFE), or the illegal or improper use of an…
HUD Makes Nearly $13 Million in Funding Available for Public Housing Agencies to Help Youth Aging out of Foster Care
April 18, 2024 / Source: HUD
WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that it will make available $12,746,450 to public housing authorities (PHAs) on a competitive basis through HUD’s Foster Youth to Independence (FYI) Initiative to provide housing assistance to young adults transitioning out of foster care. HUD Northwest Regional Administrator Andrew Lofton made the…
Interest Rate Risk: Interest Rate Risk Statistics Report
April 18, 2024 / Source: OCC
Summary The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) today published the spring 2024 edition of the Interest Rate Risk Statistics Report. The report presents interest rate risk data gathered during examinations of OCC-supervised midsize and community banks and federal savings associations (collectively, banks). The statistics are for informational purposes only and do not represent…
FDIC’s Office of the Ombudsman publishes 2023 Annual Report of Activities
April 18, 2024 / Source: FDIC
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation’s (FDIC) Office of the Ombudsman today published a report highlighting its activities and the services provided to stakeholders during 2023. The role of FDIC Ombudsman was created by Congressional action in 1995 to provide an informal alternative to the regulatory appeals process. The Office of the Ombudsman operates independent of…
FinCEN Renews Real Estate Geographic Targeting Orders
April 17, 2024 / Source: FinCEN
WASHINGTON—The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) today announced the renewal of its Geographic Targeting Orders (GTOs) that require U.S. title insurance companies to identify the natural persons behind shell companies used in non-financed purchases of residential real estate. The terms of the GTOs are effective beginning April 19, 2024, and ending on October 15, 2024….
CFPB Takes Action Against Coding Boot Camp BloomTech and CEO Austen Allred for Deceiving Students and Hiding Loan Costs
April 17, 2024 / Source: CFPB
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued an order against BloomTech and its CEO, Austen Allred, for deceiving students about the cost of loans and making false claims about graduates’ hiring rates. The CFPB found that BloomTech and Allred falsely told students the school’s “income share” agreement contracts were not loans, when…
HUD Takes a Major Step to Boost Homeownership in Tribal Communities
April 17, 2024 / Source: HUD
WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced a final rule that will increase lender participation in the Section 184 Indian Housing Loan Guarantee (Section 184) program, strengthen regulations to meet the program’s growing demands, and ensure that the program will remain a vital resource for Native American families looking to…
CFPB Updates Supervision Designation Procedures
April 16, 2024 / Source: CFPB
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a procedural rule to update how the agency designates a nonbank for supervision. The updates will streamline the designation proceedings for both the CFPB and nonbanks. The CFPB examines financial institutions, including many nonbanks, for compliance with federal consumer financial protection law. The examinations can help identify issues…
FTC Action Leads to Industry Ban for Ringleader of Student Loan Debt Relief Scam
April 16, 2024 / Source: FTC
The ringleader of a student loan debt relief scam will be permanently banned from the debt relief industry and is required to turn over assets as part of a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission. The settlement with Marco Manzi resolves FTC charges involving the student loan debt relief scheme. The FTC charged that Manzi, Ivan Esquivel, and…
Shareholder Statement on the MDB Callable Capital Exercise
April 16, 2024 / Source: Treasury
April 16, 2024 Issued by: United States, Japan, Germany, France, United Kingdom, Italy, India, Republic of Korea, Spain, Australia, Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, Denmark, and New Zealand The G20 Independent Review of Multilateral Development Banks’ (MDB) Capital Adequacy Frameworks (G20 CAF Review) provided thoughtful recommendations for boosting MDB financial capacity by stretching existing resources and pursuing innovative measures. …
FinCEN Issues Notice on the Use of Counterfeit U.S. Passport Cards to Perpetrate Identity Theft and Fraud Schemes at Financial Institutions
April 15, 2024 / Source: FinCEN
WASHINGTON—Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), in close coordination with the Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), issued a Notice to financial institutions on fraud schemes related to the use of counterfeit U.S. passport cards. The Notice provides an overview of typologies associated with U.S. passport card fraud, highlights select…
CFPB Letter to Connecticut State Legislature on Barring Medical Bills on Credit Reports
April 15, 2024 / Source: CFPB
April 11, 2024 The Honorable Matt LesserConnecticut State Senate300 Capitol Ave., Room 2800Hartford, CT 06106 Dear Senator Lesser, I write on behalf of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) regarding Senate Bill 395 as amended (SB395), which would prohibit health care providers in Connecticut from reporting medical debt to consumer reporting agencies for use in…
Treasury Targets Belarusian Sanctions Evasion Networks and Cogs in Russia’s War Machine
April 15, 2024 / Source: Treasury
WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is designating 12 entities and 10 individuals pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 14038. This action builds on U.S. sanctions imposed in response to Belarus’s fraudulent August 2020 election, as well as President Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s (Lukashenka) support for Russia’s illegal full-scale…
Treasury Targets Hamas UAV Unit Officials and Cyber Actor
April 14, 2024 / Source: Treasury
WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is taking action against Hamas, targeting Gaza- and Lebanon-based leaders of the terrorist group’s offensive cyber and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) operations. Concurrent with this action, the European Union is imposing sanctions targeting Hamas. “Today’s joint action reinforces our continued,…