InfoBytes Blog

Chopra offers warning on core service providers

On April 7, CFPB Director Rohit Chopra expressed concerns that “contracts written by the major core services providers are making it harder for local financial institutions to switch providers or use add-ons from outside technology providers.” In remarks to the CFPB’s Community Bank and Credit Union Advisory Councils, Chopra discussed downstream effects created by the heavily consolidated core services provider market on relationship banking and consumers. Chopra explained that these contracts “come with costly and unnecessary extra non-core banking services, longer contract periods, and stiff penalties and fees for ending contracts early or making other contract changes,” discourage smaller financial institutions from quickly adapting their own products and services to fit within the ever-evolving banking tech landscape, and overall make it more difficult for smaller financial institutions to compete with larger companies. Chopra announced that Bureau staff will work with core service providers and other federal agencies to examine the concentrated core platform marketplace’s impact on consumers and banks, and respond to questions related to banks’ collective bargaining on core services’ contracts. The Bureau also plans to collaborate with other agencies to examine third-party service providers and the potential referral of complaints.

Federal Issues CFPB Community Banks Credit Union Third-Party Service Providers Consumer Finance