Artificial intelligence is rapidly moving from helping consumers make purchasing decisions to making those decisions for them. So-called “agentic AI” or “AI shopping agents” could search for financial products, compare prices and terms, negotiate with providers, open or close accounts, switch providers and complete transactions without the consumer participating in each step.… Continue Reading

Proposed guidance would require specific elements in bank policies and programs and could give added significance to FDIC’s proposed industry standard-setting organization

Executive Summary

The federal banking agencies have proposed new third-party risk management guidance that is more prescriptive than its emphasis on a “risk-based” approach might suggest. In addition to calling for risk-based oversight, the proposal identifies specific elements that banks should address in board-approved policies and throughout the life cycle of third-party relationships, including due diligence, contracting, ongoing monitoring, documentation, remediation, and termination.… Continue Reading

The Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee (Committee) has scheduled an Executive Session for Thursday, September 17, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. in Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room 538. The agenda expressly includes:

  • S. 4395, Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2026
  • Brian Johnson, to be Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)
  • Abby Warren, to be Assistant Secretary of Commerce
  • Irving Dennis, to be CFO of HUD
  • Jeffrey Ledbetter, to be Inspector General of HUD

The Committee states that the session will not be webcast.… Continue Reading

On September 10, 2026, the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection (BCP or Bureau) announced a new BCP Rule Guidance Program (Program) that gives businesses, trade associations, and other stakeholders a new mechanism for bringing problems with FTC rules directly to the Bureau’s attention. The program invites submissions identifying genuine ambiguities in FTC rules, substantive conflicts between an FTC rule and an existing statute or another FTC rule, and other significant problems with the FTC rules.… Continue Reading

FinCEN and the staffs of the Fed, FDIC, OCC, and NCUA, have jointly issued two FAQs addressing the use of verifiable digital credentials (VDCs), including state-issued mobile driver’s licenses (mDLs), to verify customer identities under the Customer Identification Program (CIP) Rule.

The principal clarification is that an unexpired, government-issued VDC, such as an mDL, may qualify as “government-issued identification” for purposes of the CIP Rule, provided that the VDC evidences nationality or residence and bears a photograph, the institution has the technology or systems necessary to extract the appropriate information, and the institution’s CIP permits its use.… Continue Reading

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) recently filed a lawsuit in the U.S. district court for the district of New Jersey challenging the disparate impact rules adopted by the state.

In December 2025, the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights (DCR) adopted Rules Pertaining to Disparate Impact Discrimination under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination.… Continue Reading

The Federal Trade Commission and state of Connecticut recently secured a $4 million settlement with Chase Nissan LLC and its owners and management over allegations that the business was collecting fees without consumer authorization, including double charging for “certified pre-owned vehicles.”

The company did business as Manchester City Nissan. The Stipulated Order for a Permanent Injunction, Monetary Judgment and Other Relief was filed in the U.S.… Continue Reading

Executive Summary

The Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS), the nationwide organization representing state banking and financial regulators, has endorsed legislation that would clarify a critical issue concerning the scope of Section 525 of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980 (DIDMCA). The development comes as the House Financial Services Committee prepares to mark up H.R.… Continue Reading

Changes at the CFPB have caused a backlog of consumer complaints, the CFPB’s Office of Inspector (OIG) said, in a report.

Stop-work orders also resulted in CFPB staff temporarily not performing enforcement, supervision and other functions, but workforce-reduction actions had limited impact on bureau operations because of court intervention, the OIG said.… Continue Reading

The future of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) has rarely been more uncertain. Since its creation, the CFPB has been at the center of intense political and policy debate, with its priorities changing dramatically as administrations change. The events of the past year or so under the leadership of Acting Directors chosen by President Trump, however, have taken that policy whiplash to a new level.… Continue Reading