DMB Financial, a debt-settlement firm near Boston that operates in 24 states, agreed to pay $5.4 million in restitution to consumers for allegedly charging upfront fees before providing any service, the CFPB said.

Financial institutions said they needed more time to weigh in on issues such as how they use artificial intelligence for fraud prevention and underwriting.

Some banks are removing the term “sales” from training materials out of fear regulators will accuse them of unethical, high-pressure tactics. But that’s an overreaction to federal probes of extreme cases — sales are essential to growth.

Collectors are mulling a procedural overhaul after a three-judge panel said the practice of using vendors to inform consumers about outstanding debts is illegal. The case may also complicate the CFPB's upcoming rule on electronic messaging.

Fannie and Freddie's regulator says the companies must comply with the new Qualified Mortgage standard by the summer, while the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has extended the deadline to 2022. The conflicting timetables have stoked uncertainty in the market.

The banks disclosed this week that they are under scrutiny for conduct that may have harmed consumers. The timing raises questions about whether the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau under President Biden is poised to bring more enforcement actions against large banks than it did under Trump-appointed Director Kathy Kraninger.

The probe is the latest example of the consumer bureau scrutinizing sales tactics at big banks following the Wells Fargo fake-accounts scandal. U.S. Bancorp said it is cooperating fully.

Most executives are comfortable crossing over $1 billion of assets, where more frequent exams are the biggest supervisory change. But few are eager to take on the compliance burdens that accompany the jump above $10 billion.

Cordray, named this week to lead the Education Department's office of federal student aid, cracked down on banks, student loan servicers and for-profit colleges when he was director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Two new government reports suggest that U.S. consumers’ fortunes have improved since the start of the pandemic, with bankruptcies falling sharply and fewer people falling behind on bills. But it’s not clear how long the positive trends will sustain themselves as government relief efforts wind down and evictions and foreclosures resume.

Some say Equifax, Experian and TransUnion are too slow to investigate grievances, prompting more complaints to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. But the big three say other forces are at work.

Looming defaults and the potential for heavier regulatory scrutiny have prompted banks to pull back from the sector. Is that a good thing?

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has moved ahead with an earlier proposal to postpone the full adoption of the qualified-mortgage ability-to-repay rule, citing a need to maximize borrowers' credit access.

Banks could be a better option than payday lenders to meet consumers’ short-term credit needs. But all the OCC’s regulation does is enable partnerships that circumvent state usury laws.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau disputes a district court ruling that misconduct claims against the company were already covered by a previous settlement.

Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Mark Calabria said he wants to work with the consumer bureau on an “exit strategy” for borrowers approaching the end of their forbearance periods.

“You all will not let me breathe” is just one example in the CFPB’s complaint database where a consumer likened alleged mistreatment by a financial institution to social injustice. An artificial intelligence firm uses technology to help companies flag such language.

The agency's new policy requires collectors seeking to evict tenants to provide written notice of their rights under a federal moratorium.

The San Antonio company will no longer charge fees on transactions of $100 or less that take checking account balances into negative territory, as long as the customer has a $500 monthly direct deposit set up.

The company agreed to pay a $750,000 to address claims it steered consumers into high-cost loans from affiliated lenders. It will also reimburse consumers $646,000 in fees.