The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is an independent government agency created as part of the 2010 Dodd-Frank legislation.  Its primary purpose is to protect consumers from deceptive practices of financial companies such as the mortgage activities of Wall Street brokerage firms that contributed to the Great Recession.

The agency is receiving quite a bit of press these days as its first Director, Richard Cordray, just resigned from that position.  Some of the issues being debated in the court of public opinion include whether Cordray or President Trump has the ability to appoint the next Director, whether the agency should be funded through the appropriations process (it currently is not) and whether this independent agency should have no Congressional oversight or accountability.

As CEO of Day Air Credit Union, I firmly support financial protection of consumers.  Credit unions are member-owned financial cooperatives, so nothing is more important than protection of consumers from the unfair, deceptive or abusive practices of banks, brokerage firms or any other company that breaks the law.

President Trump, who is known to resort to some hyperbole on occasion, has called the CFPB “a total disaster”.  While I wouldn’t go that far, I’m looking forward to a directional change of the agency under the new leadership of Mick Mulvaney.   Credit unions have long advocated for common sense regulations.  The agency created to protect consumers from the abuses of Wall Street firms should be focused on those bad actors (i.e. the big banks such as Wells Fargo).  Rather than regulating from this common sense perspective, credit unions such as Day Air have been subjected to a one size fits all, onerous compliance burden.  Congress specifically gave the CFPB the power to exempt community banks and credit unions from its regulatory edict, but that power has rarely been used.

In the nine years since the Great Recession, the four “too big to fail” banks (Chase, Wells, Bank of America, Citigroup) have increased market share tremendously, while the number of community banks and credit unions have declined at a rate in excess of over one institution per day.  The CFPB penalized Wells Fargo for its egregious actions of illegally creating consumer accounts to meet sales quotas and those penalties should be applauded.  However, given the massive size of Wells Fargo (it dwarfs the total assets of all 5,800 credit unions in the country combined) the amount of the fine was no more than a slap on the wrist.

American consumers deserve better.  The CFPB should focus its efforts on the huge Wall Street firms who take advantage of consumers.  Regulations tailored for those Wall Street companies should be very different than those that impact the local, Main Street financial institutions that are integral parts of our community.

-Bill Burke

Checking Accounts

Premium Perks

Freedom Checking

CashBack Checking

Direct Deposit

More

Savings Accounts

Savings Accounts

Super Saver

Money Market

h

Certificates

HSA

Cards

Debit Card

Low Rate Credit Card

Rewards Credit Card

CU Rewards

Card Controls

Tools

Mobile Deposit

Online Banking

Pay Someone

eAlerts

Compare Rates

Vehicle Loans

Auto Loans

Refinance Your Car

Motorcycle & Jet Ski Loans

Boat & RV Loans

Mortgage & Home Loans

Mortgages

Refinance Your House

Home Equity Loans

Construction Loans

Personal

Personal Loans

,

StretchPay Loans

Student Loans

Credit Cards

Tools

Apply for a Loan

Pay a Loan

Online Bill Pay

Chat With Us

Financial Planning

Investments

i

Estate Planning

401(k) Rollover

Retirement Planning

Day Air Insurance

Auto Insurance

Home Insurance

Identity Theft Protection

Life Insurance

More Products & Services

RetireMed

Financial Counseling

Credit Reports

Reorder Checks

More

Online Banking

Online Banking

Online Bill Pay

Login to Online Banking

Mobile Banking

Mobile Banking

Mobile Deposit

Pay Someone

Text Banking

Tools

Apply for a Loan

Pay a Loan

eAlerts

Mobile Pay

Chat With Us

Accounts

Business Checking

Business Savings

Business Certificates

Cards

Business Debit Card

Business Credit Card

Loans

Commercial Loans

Term Loans

PPP Loans

Line of Credit

Services

Business Bill Pay

Tools

Online Business Banking

Login to Business Banking

Login to PIB MLO

Business Banking App

Join Day Air

Why Choose Day Air

Membership Eligibility

Annual Member Savings

Compare Rates

Join Day Air

Community

Community Involvement

Financial Education

Dayton VA Medical Center

Dayton Dragons

Contests & Sweepstakes

About

Press & News

Newsletters & Reports

Videos

Careers

Helpful Resources