Nearly four years old, the country’s newest regulator, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), has made its presence known by investigating companies and financial institutions for potential violations of federal consumer financial laws. Armed with the transferred authority from several different federal regulators and the power to enforce 18 existing federal statutes, the breadth of the CFPB’s supervisory and enforcement authority over the consumer financial sector is unprecedented.
Since opening its doors in July 2011, the CFPB has launched a number of high-profile investigations resulting in a flurry of hefty fines and sanctions for companies across a wide array of industries. While the CFPB’s investigative tools are similar to those used by other regulators, the procedures surrounding the bureau’s broad investigative authority present new and unique challenges for companies receiving demands for information relating to a CFPB investigation.
