Press Releases

Research Will Help Create a Financial System That Enhances Economic Stability and Wealth-Building for Underserved Households WASHINGTON, DC – The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) today announced the creation of the Julian Bond Financial Equity Research Institute, named for civil rights icon and founding CRL board member Julian Bond. The Julian Bond Institute (JBI), the first new research entity in...

Late last night, Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought – who spearheaded the recent freeze on federal payments now blocked by U.S. courts– replaced Treasury Secretary Bessent as acting director of Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and immediately signaled that he will defang the independent watchdog agency. “Since its creation, the Bureau has returned $21 billion to people’s wallets...

A $200 million rebound from the previous year DURHAM, NC – Today, the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) released a new report, Down the Drain: Payday Lenders Take $2.4 Billion in Fees from Borrowers in One Year. Based on 2022 data, the report features a range of original findings. In addition to calculating that borrowers paid payday lenders $2.4 billion...

New survey shows frequent, serious harm including that more than one in five late-paying borrowers had their car repossessed OAKLAND, CA – The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) today issued a new research brief, Under the Radar: Evidence of Prohibited Vehicle-Title Loans Made in 22 States and DC. High-cost vehicle title lending is illegal in 33 U.S. states and the...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced yesterday that President Donald Trump has appointed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent as acting director of the agency. The decision follows the president’s removal of former CFPB Director Rohit Chopra over the weekend. In response, Nadine Chabrier, senior policy counsel at the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), issued the following statement...

Legislation to keep megabanks’ overdraft fees expensive among the bills under consideration WASHINGTON, D.C. – Tomorrow, Wednesday, February 5th at 10 am eastern time, the U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Committee will hold a hearing titled, “Make Community Banking Great Again,” that will feature testimony from Center for Responsible Lending (CRL) Vice President and Federal Policy Director Mitria Spotser...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, it was announced that President Trump has removed Rohit Chopra from his job as director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). In response, Mitria Spotser, Vice President and Federal Policy Director at the Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), issued the following statement: While the head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau may change, the agency’s...

Opinion was misused to claim that fintech payday loans are not “credit” WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Federal Register yesterday published a notice that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a new Advisory Opinion that rescinded an Advisory Opinion issued in 2020 under CFPB Director Kathy Kraninger on whether certain employer-integrated earned wage advances (EWA) constituted “credit” subject to the...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a final rule that would apply existing mortgage protections to Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) loans and require lenders to approve these loans based on a borrower’s ability to repay. PACE loans, often used by homeowners to purchase solar panels, are paid back through property taxes. Anneliese Lederer, senior...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued an overdraft rule that will prevent the country’s very largest banks and credit unions from charging excessive overdraft fees, lowering the cost of most overdraft fees from around $30 down to $5. “This rule provides needed breathing room for financially constrained consumers who are hit hardest by excessive overdraft...