Payday lending

WASHINGTON — Eighteen Republican State Attorneys Generals sent a letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau last week pushing back against the agency's proposal to rein in high-cost small-dollar loans.

The agency said Wednesday it has received more than 500,000 comments on the proposal — and many more may be filed in the coming days.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's final rule on prepaid cards will improve fraud protection and provide greater transparency of costs for such products, but is already drawing fire from both consumer advocates and bankers over how it treats overdraft fees.

The Federal Trade Commission took a victory lap Tuesday in its fight with race car driver Scott Tucker and his payday lending operation.

A bipartisan group of House lawmakers sent a letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Thursday expressing concern about the agency's proposal to rein in payday lending and other short-term credit, warning it could hamper credit availability.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's proposal not only requires lenders to determine a borrower's ability to repay, but also forces creditors to follow the bureau's approach to making that determination.

WASHINGTON — More than one hundred House Democrats sent a letter to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray on Wednesday calling for the agency to strengthen its proposal to rein in payday lending.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Monday fined a large auto title lender $9 million for failing to disclose the terms and costs of its title loans in three states, and for illegally exposing consumers' information to their employers.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed a lawsuit this week against a Van Nuys, Calif., credit repair company for deceptively marketing its services and charging consumers illegal fees.

As the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposes new small-dollar lending rules, it has also sought comment on an alternative plan that would open the door to banks providing more lower-income credit solutions.