Reportedly, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) now plans to pursue a notice‑and‑comment rulemaking process for its rewrite of the Biden‑era open banking rule, marking a shift from prior indications that the CFPB would issue an interim final rule. In December 2025, reports suggested that the Section 1033 open banking rulemaking might be advanced through an interim final rule ahead of the CFPB’s expected funding …
CFPB and DOJ Withdraw 2023 Statement on ECOA and Noncitizen Borrowers
On January 12, 2026, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) formally withdrew their October 2023 joint statement addressing creditors’ consideration of immigration status under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and its implementing Regulation B. The withdrawal is another explicit renunciation of the previous administration’s policies applicable to financial services, though the agencies were clear that withdrawal of the …
CFPB Submits to Court Order, Seeks New Funding
On January 9, 2026, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) requested $145 million in new funding from the Federal Reserve. This development follows a ruling by the US District Court for the District of Columbia that the CFPB’s refusal to request additional funding from the Federal Reserve would violate the preliminary injunction in National Treasury Employees Union, et al. v. Russell Vought. The ruling, therefore, essentially required …
Judge Rules CFPB’s Refusal to Request Funding Violates Preliminary Injunction
In a case deciding the fate of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), National Treasury Employees Union, et al. v. Russell Vought, the US District Court for the District of Columbia declared that the CFPB’s refusal to request funding violates the existing preliminary injunction. The December 30, 2025, ruling effectively requires the CFPB to request funding from the Federal Reserve – a move the CFPB has …
CFPB Advisory Opinion Analyzes Whether EWA Is Credit Under TILA and Regulation Z
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued an advisory opinion (AO), rescinding its 2024 proposed interpretive rule and clarifying the regulatory treatment of certain earned wage access (EWA) services. In the AO, the CFPB analyzes whether nonrecourse EWA services are subject to the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and its implementing Regulation Z and confirms that certain employer-partnered EWA services are not “credit” under that …
Key Fair Lending Updates From the Fed’s 2025 Interagency Webinar
On December 16, the Federal Reserve (Fed) hosted its annual Fair Lending Interagency Webinar, during which it, the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) offered insight into their fair lending programs. The Fed highlighted its risk-focused approach to fair lending supervision, emphasizing the importance of tailored risk assessments, recurring training and robust monitoring of discretionary lending practices. Examiners continue …
BNPL Market Remains Strong, Per CFPB Report
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a data spotlight on the buy now, pay later (BNPL) market. Using data about the BNPL market for the years 2022 and 2023 from six large BNPL providers, the report describes trends and figures in BNPL market growth, borrower usage, late fees and charge‑offs. While there are different versions of the BNPL product, the report focuses on four-installment, …
Personal Financial Data Rights Interim Final Rule Expected Soon
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) open banking rulemaking is at a pivotal moment. After the US District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky enjoined enforcement of the CFPB’s Personal Financial Data Rights (PFDR) rule in October, the CFPB this week disclosed in a court filing that it will issue an interim final rule under Section 1033 of the Dodd-Frank Act. The CFPB recently …
DOJ Ends Disparate-Impact Liability Under Title VI, Narrowing Civil Rights Enforcement
On December 9, 2025, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a final rule eliminating “disparate-impact” liability from its Title VI regulations. The final rule rescinds portions of DOJ’s Title VI regulations that allowed disparate-impact claims (i.e., challenges to neutral policies with disproportionate effects on protected groups) and aligns DOJ’s enforcement approach with the administration’s broader campaign to curtail disparate-impact liability across federal agencies. This …
State Attorneys General Step Up Oversight of BNPL Programs
A coalition of seven attorneys general recently requested information from six buy now, pay later (BNPL) providers to evaluate their BNPL programs and whether they comply with consumer protection laws. The coalition is comprised of attorneys general from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Minnesota, North Carolina and Wisconsin, with Connecticut and North Carolina leading the inquiry. Company responses are due by December 31. The inquiry follows …