Links in “Banks”

With the CFPB's recent aggressive action against two pension advance companies, the issue of whether similar claims against providers of merchant cash advances, litigation funding companies and other fund providers who do not require repayment of advances arises. [8/24/15]

Bank of Internet USA issues big mortgages to high earners that other lenders might not welcome with open arms. It has grown five-fold -- to nearly $5 billion -- over the last five years. Will it be able to keep up the growth or will its amazing run fizzle? [8/24/15]

With the CFPB's emphasis on its complaint database serving as its eyes and ears, one would think that payday lenders would be near the top of the complaint list, given the CFPB's proposals to nearly regulate the industry out of existence. But complaints against payday lenders constitute less than 1% of the bureau's complaint database. What's at the top? Complaints about mortgages (36%). [8/24/15]

The CFPB's action against Springstone Financial for its deceptive credit enrollment practices in dental offices shows the the healthcare space is not outside the purview of the CFPB, as many have supposed. The second takeaway is that when staff makes representations that are inconsistent with the loan documents, UDAAP violations may follow. See also here. [8/21/15]

Amid reports that the CFPB has collected financial data on 600 million American financial accounts and does not have the proper safeguards in place to protect the data, the Federal Office of the Inspector General has recently updated its work plan to include a security audit of the agency. [8/21/15]

The national average FICO score is now 695, the highest it has been in a decade. Some attribute at least part of the increase to the increasing number of ways consumers can access their credit scores for free. The picture is not entirely rosy, however. Some consumers have dropped out of the traditional credit market and no longer have a valid FICO score. [8/21/15]

There are countless cyber threats out there. How do we deal with it all? The key is to focus on what is relevant to you and your financial institution. [8/21/15]

The CFPB is among the federal agencies with a page on Yelp. This opportunity for unfettered and unfiltered consumer reviews is exactly what the CFPB espouses with its consumer complaint database. So far, the agency has two consumer reviews. "Ryan G." gives the bureau five stars. "Fats" gives it one star, calling it the "Worst. Federal. Agency. Ever."  [8/20/15]

Equity research analyst Richard Bove called Dodd-Frank the worst piece of legislation in history when it was signed in 2010. "I now believe that this judgment, dismal as it was, actually failed to capture how really bad this legislation was." He says the government has effectively nationalized banks. [8/19/15]

Though they make up only 14% of the number of students in higher ed, grad school students hold about 40% of the $1.2 trillion in student debt, with six-figure debts becoming much more common. [8/19/15]