Banks, consumer groups support closing industrial loan company (ILC) loophole

Once again, PIRG has joined leading consumer advocacy groups and bank and credit union trade associations to endorse new legislation to close the industrial loan company (ILC) charter loophole, the “Close the Shadow Banking Loophole Act.”

Congress sought to preserve a competitive economy by establishing a strict separation between banking and commerce. The ILC loophole allows commercial entities to undermine the intent of Congress and ignore the protections designed to maintain that separation. This loophole:

  • Creates a riskier financial system and less competitive economy;
  • Gives major commercial firms – including Big Tech companies – access to sensitive balance and transaction data, adding to their trove of personal and behavioral data; and
  • Exempts these nonbanks from many consumer data and privacy protections.

The Senate legislation would eliminate the loophole and strengthen protections for consumers, taxpayers and the financial system.

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Ed Mierzwinski

Senior Director, Federal Consumer Program, PIRG

Ed oversees U.S. PIRG’s federal consumer program, helping to lead national efforts to improve consumer credit reporting laws, identity theft protections, product safety regulations and more. Ed is co-founder and continuing leader of the coalition, Americans For Financial Reform, which fought for the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, including as its centerpiece the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. He was awarded the Consumer Federation of America's Esther Peterson Consumer Service Award in 2006, Privacy International's Brandeis Award in 2003, and numerous annual "Top Lobbyist" awards from The Hill and other outlets. Ed lives in Virginia, and on weekends he enjoys biking with friends on the many local bicycle trails.

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