The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has announced that it will expand its oversight of digital payment services such as Apple Pay and Cash App. This signifies an increase in regulatory scrutiny for financial technology companies due to their increasing significance in consumers’ lives.
The CFPB’s new policy guidance is intended to cover large tech companies that play a major role in the market of payments and fund transfers. It will monitor these firms to ensure that consumers are both protected and have access to a fair and transparent financial marketplace.
Under the new guidelines, firms that manage transactions worth over $10 million per year or handle more than 1 million consumer transactions annually will be subjected to CFPB’s compliance inspections and enforcement actions. In essence, this will provide the CFPB with an opportunity to evaluate how these companies are working towards compliance with existing U.S. consumer protection laws.
The companies affected by this new oversight will need to focus on ensuring their policies and procedures comply with CFPB and federal guidelines. Dealing with the rise in digital payments, the authorities are focused more than ever on preventing illicit activities, protecting consumer rights and promoting fair competition.