CFPB announces e-disclosures and HMDA platform Tech Sprints

Federal Issues CFPB Fintech HMDA Disclosures

On June 29, the CFPB announced two Tech Sprints that will “bring together regulators, technologists, software providers, consumer groups, and financial institutions to develop technological solutions to shared compliance challenges.” As previously covered by InfoBytes, the CFPB announced, in September 2019, its intention to use Tech Sprints—which had been used by the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority seven times since 2016 and resulted in a pilot project on digital regulatory reporting—to encourage regulatory innovation and requested comments from stakeholders on the plan.

• E-Disclosures, October 5-9, 2020. This Tech Sprint will have participants “improve upon existing consumer disclosures” by “design[ing] innovative electronic methods for informing consumers about adverse credit actions, including from the use of algorithms.” The Bureau notes that many disclosure laws “were written in a paper-based age” and using digital technology for disclosures may “enable greater consumer engagement and understanding.”
• HMDA platform and submission, March 22-26, 2021. This Tech Sprint will encourage participants to “develop new tools to address compliance challenges and improve the filing process” on the HMDA platform (operated by the Bureau on behalf of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council). Additionally, participants “may work to further develop the HMDA Platform’s Application Programming Interfaces to increase efficiency and lower cost.”

Separately, the FDIC also announced the start of a prototyping competition intended “to help develop a new and innovative approach to financial reporting, particularly for community banks.” The competition will involve 20 technology firms from across the country that will propose solutions for the FDIC’s consideration to make financial reporting “seamless and less burdensome for banks.”