[1]The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB [2]) released a bulletin [3] on Tuesday to remind supervised financial institutions of the existing regulatory requirements regarding the confidentiality of supervisory information.
Included in the bulletin were non-bank financial institutions that may be unfamiliar with federal supervision.
"The CFPB's supervision program holds companies accountable for how they treat consumers," CFPB Director Richard Cordray said. "The Bureau’s oversight of banks and nonbanks alike helps to level the playing field for all companies, and to ensure a fair and transparent marketplace for consumers."
Banks and credit unions with assets totaling more than $10 billion fall under the supervision of the CFPB, as well as certain nonbank financial companies such as mortgage lenders and servicers, payday lenders, and private student lenders, as well certain large debt collectors, consumer reporting agencies, student loan servicers, and international remittance providers. Tuesday's bulletin provides guidance as far as what types of information should be defined as confidential supervisory information and states that with limited exceptions, disclosure of such information is not allowed.
The CFPB stated in the bulletin that its existing supervisory authority over an institution is not limited or altered by any non-disclosure agreement that institution has entered into that may restrict it from sharing information with a regulator or requires the institution to notify a third party when it shares information, nor are the institution's obligations relating to confidential supervisory information changed or altered in any way.