Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming consumer financial services, and consumer debt collection is no exception. AI already is being used in a variety of first-party and third-party consumer debt collection activities, ranging from account scoring and communication strategies to payment-plan optimization and compliance monitoring.

In our Consumer Finance Monitor podcast show being released today, our special guest John McNamara, Chief Growth Officer at Avtal (a fintech and software as a service (SAS) company that provides an AI-powered, white-labeled digital engagement platform to help third-party consumer debt collection agencies automate communication and process self-service payments) and  a former CFPB senior official who played a significant role in developing Regulation F promulgated under the Federal Debt Collection Practices Act explained that the debt collection industry needs to distinguish genuine AI applications from the marketing hype surrounding the technology.… Continue Reading

The House Financial Services Committee on September 16 approved H.R. 10184, the Consumer Financial Protection Accountability and Reform Act of 2026, by a 28-21 vote. The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Andy Barr (R-Ky.), would make significant changes to the structure, funding, rulemaking, supervision, enforcement, and other authorities of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). … Continue Reading

On September 16, 2026, the House Financial Services Committee (Committee) approved H.R. 7866, the American Lending Fairness Act of 2026, legislation introduced by Rep. Warren Davidson (R-Ohio) and Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY) that would address the effect of state opt-outs under Section 525 of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980 (DIDMCA) on interest-rate exportation by state-chartered banks and credit unions located outside an opt-out state and making loans to a resident of the opt-out state.… Continue Reading

The Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) on September 16, 2026 released an Artificial Intelligence Supervisory Framework designed to help state financial examiners identify and understand how the bank and non-bank institutions they regulate are using artificial intelligence, assess the associated risks, and determine when a more in-depth review may be appropriate.… Continue Reading

The Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee voted 13-11 along strict party lines on September 17 to advance Brian Johnson’s nomination to become Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The vote took place during an Executive Session at which the Committee also considered several other presidential nominations and legislation reauthorizing the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program. … Continue Reading

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