Consumer Finance Monitor

The latest episode of the Consumer Finance Monitor podcast examines a significant and coordinated regulatory initiative that could reshape anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) compliance across the financial services industry. In this episode, host Alan Kaplinsky and guest Celia Cohen, a partner in Ballard Spahr's White Collar Defense and Investigations Group,...

At a May 19, 2026 Ballard Spahr webinar, "Cutting Out the Middleman: The Surge in FinTech Applications to Charter Banks, Industrial Banks and National Trust Companies," a distinguished panel of banking, fintech, crypto, and consumer financial services experts explored one of the most important developments currently reshaping the financial services industry: the growing movement by fintech compani...

At a May 19, 2026 Ballard Spahr webinar, "Cutting Out the Middleman: The Surge in FinTech Applications to Charter Banks, Industrial Banks and National Trust Companies," a distinguished panel of banking, fintech, crypto, and consumer financial services professionals explored one of the most important developments currently reshaping the financial services industry: the growing movement by fintech c...

On May 12, 2026, we produced a 90-minute webinar in which we explored one of the most important and rapidly developing issues in consumer financial services law: coerced debt and the emerging legislative efforts designed to address it. The webinar has been re-purposed into a two-part podcast series, the first of which was released this past Thursday, June 11 th , and the second of which is being r...

On May 12, 2026, we produced a 90-minute webinar in which we explored one of the most important and rapidly developing issues in consumer financial services law: coerced debt and the emerging legislative efforts designed to address it. The webinar has been re-purposed into a two-part podcast series, the first of which is being released today, June 11 th , and the second of which is being released ...

In this episode, Adam Maarec sits down with fintech thought leader Simon Taylor for a lively fireside chat focused on the rapidly evolving world of fintech, payments, and banking innovation. Adam, an experienced legal and regulatory advisor in financial services, and Simon, widely recognized for his writing, podcasts, and advisory work with fintechs, banks, VCs, and regulators, delve into some of...

On a recent episode of the Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast, Alan Kaplinsky, host of the podcast, had the opportunity to interview Amelia O'Rourke-Owens, a legal scholar and former CFPB policy fellow, about her article, "Tearing Holes in Consumer Protection: Democracy's Safety Net." Amelia is the founder and CEO of Resilience Solutions, which provides subject matter expertise and consulting servic...

Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming consumer financial services and countless other industries. As AI systems become more autonomous, adaptive, and deeply integrated into commercial decision-making, courts, regulators, and industry participants are increasingly confronting a critical question: when AI causes harm, who should be held responsible? In our latest episode of our award-winni...

Today's episode of the Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast features a wide-ranging and timely discussion about one of the most consequential fair lending developments in years: the CFPB's final rule fundamentally reshaping enforcement under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) and Regulation B. Hosted by Alan Kaplinsky (the Founder, Chair for 25 years and now Senior Counsel of the Consumer Financi...

Today, we released a new episode of the award-winning Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast examining one of the most significant recent federal developments in the fight against scams and fraud: Executive Order 14390 . Hosted by Alan Kaplinsky (the founder, chair for 25 years and now Senior Counsel in the Consumer Financial Services Group), the episode features returning guests Kate Griffin and Nick B...

In the final episode of our Debt Sales 101 mini-series, we focus on what happens after a debt sale closes and how sellers manage ongoing compliance, oversight, and risk. We discuss how regulators view debt sales as a managed activity rather than a clean exit and what that means for post-sale responsibilities.    From a regulatory perspective, sellers are expected to maintain reasonable oversight o...

In the episode of Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast being released today, we explore the White House's National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence published on March 20, 2026. This new framework represents the Administration's most concrete attempt yet to shape the future of AI governance in the United States. While it does not carry the force of law, it offers a revealing look at the pol...

In Episode 5 of our Debt Sales 101 mini-series, we turn to contracting and closing, where legal structure, regulatory expectations, and commercial terms come together to define the transaction. We discuss the key provisions in a debt purchase and sale agreement and how those provisions allocate risk between buyers and sellers.    From a regulatory perspective, the contract is more than a commercia...

In this episode of the Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast, host Alan Kaplinsky (founder, former chair for 25 years and now Senior Counsel) had the pleasure of speaking with Sam Levine, Commissioner of the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP), about the agency's evolving role as one of the most active local consumer protection regulators in the country. Important note: Th...

In Episode 4 of our Debt Sales 101 mini-series, we focus on the current regulatory landscape governing debt sales and how recent developments are shaping the market. We discuss how oversight has become more fragmented, more active, and increasingly driven by state regulators and attorneys general, and how that shift is affecting both buyers and sellers.    A central theme in this episode is that r...

The latest episode of the Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast being released today tackles one of the most consequential developments in bank–fintech litigation in recent years: the Los Angeles Superior Court's tentative decision in Opportunity Financial, LLC v. Hewlett (read more here ). This case squarely addresses the long-debated "true lender" doctrine which has for decades bedeviled banks and Fi...

In Episode 3 of our Debt Sales 101 mini-series, we discuss who buys charged-off debt and how debt sale transactions are typically structured. We explain how different buyers specialize in different asset classes and how buyers evaluate portfolios from legal, regulatory, and commercial perspectives.    From a buyer's perspective, purchasing debt is not just a credit decision. Buyers are underwritin...

In this episode of the Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast, host Alan Kaplinsky is joined by colleagues Pilar French and Burt Rublin to unpack a rapidly evolving issue at the intersection of bank–FinTech partnerships and interstate lending: the renewed exercise of state opt-out authority under Section 525 of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980 (DIDMCA). Colorado...

In Episode 2 of our Debt Sales 101 mini-series, we move from the "why" behind debt sales to the "what." Specifically, we discuss what types of debt can be sold, how portfolios are typically composed, and the legal and regulatory considerations that determine whether debt is appropriate for sale.   Not all debt is equally marketable, and not all accounts within a portfolio carry the same legal, reg...

We're pleased to announce that our latest episode of the Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast is now live and it's one you won't want to miss. In this episode, our host Alan Kaplinsky, founder, Chair for 25 years, and now Senior Counsel of our Consumer Financial Services Group, is joined by Max Dubin, Chief of Staff to the Acting Superintendent of Banking at the New York Department of Financial Servic...

We are pleased to release Episode 1 of our new podcast mini-series, Debt Sales 101. In this first episode, we start with the fundamentals and discuss what a debt sale is, how these transactions are structured, and why companies choose to sell debt. Debt sales are often discussed in simple terms, but in practice they sit at the intersection of business strategy, legal structure, and regulatory comp...

In today's episode of the Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast Show, our host, Ballard Spahr's Alan Kaplinsky, was joined by colleagues Steven Burt and Melanie Vartabedian to explore a rapidly evolving and increasingly complex area of consumer financial services: residential solar finance. Building on prior discussions of the broader solar finance landscape, this episode zeroes in on the regulatory an...

On today's episode of the Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast our host, Alan Kaplinsky, discusses the rapidly evolving landscape of federal financial supervision with Sherra Brown, Head of Regulatory Research and Analysis for the Americas at Vixio Regulatory Intelligence. Our conversation focuses on what may be a fundamental shift in supervisory practices at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau a...

Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming the consumer financial services industry. From underwriting and fraud detection to customer engagement and collections, financial institutions are increasingly deploying advanced AI tools to automate processes, personalize services, and improve operational efficiency. We are releasing today, on our Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast show, a discussion...

We are releasing today on our Consumer Finance Monitor podcast our host Alan Kaplinsky's discussion with Marisa Calderon, President and CEO of Prosperity Now, about two high-profile policy proposals raised or embraced by President Trump as part of a broader populist affordability agenda: 1.          A nationwide 10% cap on credit card interest rates for one year. 2.          The Credit Card Compet...