CFPB doubling down on fintechs

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said it would carry out supervisory exams of nonbank fintech companies that pose a risk to consumers. The CFPB has had the authority to look into nonbanks since 2013, but it’s only decided to invoke that authority now.

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Payday dispute resolutions moved online. Chaos ensued.

Analysis by The Markup, a data-driven newsroom covering Big Tech, suggests Utah’s decision to move payday disputes to online courtrooms has increased default judgments against defendants. Defaulting on these loans can lead to garnished wages and a lower credit score.

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JPMorgan finances $285B for ESG goals

In its ESG report for 2021, JPMorgan announced that it had financed and facilitated $285B toward various ESG goals, including development finance, green projects, and community development. It’s part of its larger goal to commit $2.5T toward ESG initiatives over the next decade.

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What’s next for SMB payments?

This morning, Fyle, an India-based expense-management platform serving US businesses, announced that it launched a real-time spend-management integration for all Visa cards. Fyle said it would roll out similar integrations with other card issuers at an unspecified date.

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Meta’s metaverse fees elicit creator scrutiny

Meta, Facebook’s parent group, announced that it’s rolled out payments products on its metaverse platform Horizon Worlds. Combined, its various sales fees could lead to Meta taking up to 47.5% of creator profits.

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Facing sanctions, Russian billionaires sell fintech holdings

FIBR Tech Ltd., which provides online lending to businesses, and ANNA Money, a business account and admin service provider, have announced searches for new buyers. Both businesses are currently owned by ABH Holdings, which includes sanctioned Russian billionaires as its owners.

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Walmart poaches PayPal CFO

The retail giant announced John Rainey, current CFO at PayPal, as its next finance head. He will start the job on June 6.

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Apple Pay top payments app for teens

According to a survey of 7100 teenagers by Piper Sandler, Apple Pay saw the most monthly users among teens than any other payments app. It beat out competitors like Venmo, Cash App, and PayPal in terms of market share among teenagers.

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Meta restarts currency plans

Internal memos suggest Meta, which owns Facebook, has plans to add virtual coins, tokens, and lending to its apps. This includes “social” or “reputation” tokens that reward substantive contributions to Facebook groups.

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Visa faces antitrust suit over network fees

Yesterday, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated two counts in an antitrust suit against Visa related to its debit card fees for payment processing networks. The plaintiff, Pulse Network LLC, argues that Visa’s fixed monthly fees for using its debit network encouraged payments processors to favor Visa over other card networks.

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Uber gears up for super app launch

The rideshare giant said it will soon add plane, train, and rental-car booking to its app in the U.K. It also said it may scale these services beyond the U.K. if the new services gain traction.

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What’s Egypt’s long game with InstaPay?

What’s Egypt’s long game with InstaPay?

Launched on March 23 by Egypt’s central bank, InstaPay permits electronic transfers from accounts belonging to different banks. 13 banks currently use the app and run on its Instant Payment Network (IPN).

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Apple eyes building its own payments tech

Apple eyes building its own payments tech

A multiyear plan would help the computing giant develop its own infrastructure for financial products. It would facilitate new approaches to payment processing, risk assessment for lending, fraud analysis, credit checks, and more.

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Major U.S. banks face climate change vote

Major U.S. banks face climate change vote

Shareholders are set to vote on proposals to reduce financing for projects in oil and gas. The banks include JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley.

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The hidden costs of paycheck advances

The hidden costs of paycheck advances

According to the Financial Health Network, more than 70% of pay-advance users have taken out several advances in a row. Predatory data collection and obscure cash-limit algorithms further affect consumers within this $12B industry.

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