Enforcement actions

A new settlement with Massachusetts resolves all outstanding administrative actions against Ocwen Financial Corp. by a group of 30 states, but two states' legal actions against the servicer remain outstanding.

In the joint report with the Federal Trade Commission on debt collection practices, the CFPB said it had initiated four enforcement actions last year, had resolved one case and has five others pending.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group has agreed to pay $500 million to the state of New York after a $5.5B agreement last year with the FHA, and another probe is pending.

The acting head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has made clear he wants to rein in the bureau’s spending, but what exactly he plans to cut is a mystery.

The CFPB sought input Wednesday about the effectiveness of its supervisory activities and added more topics, including consumer complaint reporting, to a review of all aspects of the agency's operations.

Acting Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Mick Mulvaney is discarding many of the policies of his predecessor but none as important perhaps as the agency's targeting of "unfair, deceptive or abusive acts or practices."

The acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Tuesday had his first taste of the withering congressional criticism endured by his predecessor on trips to Capitol Hill.

Continuing to pull back the reins on the aggressive approach taken under former Director Richard Cordray, the agency's new five-year plan values consumer choice over heavy-handed enforcement.

Consumer advocates see acting CFPB Director Mick Mulvaney's restructuring as an attempt to reduce oversight and penalties for firms that discriminate against borrowers.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is seeking comment on how it sues companies via an internal process rather than the traditional court system.