The news: After essentially halting the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB’s) operations, Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) fired dozens of “probationary” CFPB employees and contractors via email, per Wired.
As we covered previously, although financial institutions (FIs) may be celebrating the rollbacks in certain regulations, the CFPB remains the primary regulator for nonbank lenders. Without the regulator, lines will likely blur between banks and their digital competitors.
What’s next: According to PYMNTS, that’s already happening. And in the new regulatory landscape, it may be easier for fintechs to get one of banks’ biggest differentiators—a banking license.