In an article published on September 3 in Thomson Reuters Westlaw Journal, David Elliott and Richard Keller provide insight on recent developments in the payday lending industry.

“As regulators eye the industry with increasing scrutiny, it is more important than ever for lenders to keep abreast of constant changes on the federal level as well as in each state in which they operate,” they explain.

There has been a major regulatory rollback and a delay in the enforcement of regulations by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau thus far in 2019, and a groundswell of passed and proposed state legislation to limit payday lending interest rates.

“Progressives in Congress are also seeking to establish additional federal payday lending regulations and have proposed an overarching federal scheme to limit interest and fees charged to consumers,” the attorneys state.

According to Elliott and Keller, in the courts, the hot-button issue of 2019 has revolved around online payday lending sourced from tribal lands. The CFPB, states and classes of borrowers brought suits against Think Finance LLC over what regulators termed a “rent a tribe” payday loan scheme using Native American tribal laws to circumvent applicable laws and regulations.

You may read the full expert analysis article in Volume 25, Issue 8 print edition of Thomson Reuters Westlaw Journal.