Washington, D.C. (Oct. 22, 2024) — Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey issued the following statement on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s 1033 final rule released today.
“While the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s 1033 final rule includes an important, ICBA-advocated community bank exemption, ICBA and the nation’s community bankers remain concerned about the impact of the rule on consumer data security and privacy.
“As advocated by ICBA, the CFPB’s rule on sharing consumer financial data exempts community banks under $850 million in assets — which are defined as small businesses by the Small Business Administration — from a provision requiring institutions to create and maintain a third-party developer interface. Nevertheless, the CFPB’s rule requires banks over $850 million in assets to bear all the costs of establishing and maintaining a ‘developer portal’ that third-party companies could use to access consumer data with consumer authorization.
“Despite CFPB Director Rohit Chopra’s remarks today on CNBC, nonbank fintechs that access customer information and store bank login credentials may not take the same care in protecting consumer privacy and data that community banks do. ICBA continues calling on the CFPB to focus its implementation of Section 1033 on promoting data security at these third-party entities. Otherwise, community banks will be faced with the impossible task of vetting the security protocols of potentially thousands of fintech companies seeking to access their customers’ data.
“ICBA looks forward to fully reviewing today’s rule and continuing to work with the CFPB to minimize the impact of its rule on consumer privacy, regulatory compliance burden, data security, and the legal complications presented by permissioned third-party access to consumer bank accounts.”
About ICBA
The Independent Community Bankers of America® has one mission: to create and promote an environment where community banks flourish. We power the potential of the nation’s community banks through effective advocacy, education, and innovation.
As local and trusted sources of credit, America’s community banks leverage their relationship-based business model and innovative offerings to channel deposits into the neighborhoods they serve, creating jobs, fostering economic prosperity, and fueling their customers’ financial goals and dreams. For more information, visit ICBA’s website at icba.org.
