CFPB defanged?
Deregulation removes specter of new regulations governing overdraft protection.
With Trump-appointed deregulators now in charge of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the specter of new regulations governing overdraft practices and fees has been lifted, at least temporarily.
CFPB is at a fork in the road and less likely to further restrict credit union overdraft programs, at least in the immediate future, observes Brian Witt, senior partner in the Farleigh Wada Witt law firm, Portland, Ore.
“They’re likely to put a freeze on any new regulations for the next six to nine months, until they see what the new director’s priorities are,” he says. “That should bring credit unions and banks short-term relief from any potential new regulation.”
The threat of heavy-handed overdraft regulation by CFPB was receding even before an anti-regulation acting director took over, he notes; CFPB’s own research study showed little need for more restrictions.
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