On breaking news that the high-cost lender OppFi — which charges people up to 195% interest — withdrew its application to become a bank, Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) Policy Counsel Katelin Kaiser issued the following statement:
OppFi drains borrowers dry — financially devastating families and communities along the way and making the lender unfit for our insured banking system. Following the withdrawal of bank applications from OppFi and, recently, Enova, federal banking regulators should clearly state that high-cost lenders cannot use a national bank charter to override state protections against high-cost loans.
CRL produced a report on OppFi that shows how its business model is based on frequent refinancing and loans that fail at a staggeringly high rate as indicated by a charge-off rate over 50%. To read the report, go to: “Lost Opportunities: How OppFi Traps Borrowers in Unaffordable Debt."
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Press Contact: Matthew Kravitz matthew.kravitz@responsiblelending.org