The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau plans later this month to release its long-awaited rulemaking to implement Section 1033 of the Dodd-Frank Act, concerning financial data privacy, Director Rohit Chopra said today. During a speech in Washington, D.C., on possible future actions by the bureau, Chopra didn’t provide any specifics about the rule other than it will “seek to accelerate America’s shift to open, competitive and decentralized banking while also safeguarding against abuse of our personal data.”
Chopra also said that payment systems in the U.S. may be driven by the private sector, but that public payments infrastructure and regulation are important and suggested concerns about the cost, speed and competitiveness of the ecosystem. He said the CFPB will soon take several steps to ensure that private currencies and payment systems “do no harm to consumers,” including subjecting nonbanks to supervisory examinations by the bureau.
Later, responding to a question, Chopra questioned whether credit card rewards miles are funds, noting that large retailers benefit from rewards programs and drive purchases. Chopra stated that there are questions about the transparency of newer rewards programs, like online game rewards, and that CFPB may provide further guidance on related issues
