The CFPB Is Moving Us Closer to an Equitable Financial System. Here’s How.
By Leigh Phillips
President & CEO of SaverLife
Chair of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Community Advisory Board
Predatory lending. Soaring prices. Eviction notices. As the CEO of SaverLife, a nonprofit fintech with a mission to help families build emergency savings and long-term financial stability, these are just a few of the financial difficulties our members struggle with every day.
SaverLife envisions a fair and inclusive financial system - a system in which all people in America have the opportunity to achieve financial stability and opportunity. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau represents one of our best hopes to make this vision a reality. Since its inception over a decade ago, the CFPB has worked towards building a better financial system, one that is founded on the principle that all consumers deserve financial products and services that are fair, accessible, and affordable.
This month I began a one-year term as Chair of the CFPB Consumer Advisory Board (CAB). My 13 fellow board members and I are experts in various aspects of consumer finance. We are charged with informing and advising the CFPB on the impact of financial products and practices, representing the perspective of our industries, and speaking out on behalf of underserved consumers and communities.
At any time, this would be a great honor and a serious responsibility. But I am acutely aware that this is a time like no other. The economic impact of the global pandemic has left the lives of millions of Americans in ruins, laid bare deeply entrenched inequalities, and left us with an unprecedented imperative to work together towards a truly inclusive economy.
As Chair, my goal will be to center financial equity in our activities and explore how the CFPB can proactively work to close the racial and gender wealth gaps that have only worsened since the pandemic. Over the coming year, the CAB will have the opportunity to advise the CFPB on a range of critical priorities, including:
Eliminating discrimination in small business lending and increasing access to small business capital for minority and women-owned businesses by ensuring the transparent collection and reporting of small business lending data. The unequal distribution of pandemic relief funds only highlights this as a deep and pressing need.
Assisting the CFPB in their efforts to prevent evictions and foreclosures. As eviction moratoriums come to an end and pandemic relief funds remain unspent, millions of Americans are at risk of losing their homes. This unnecessary crisis must be avoided.
Understanding the impacts, both positive and negative, of rapidly changing financial technologies, and the mass collection and utilization of consumer data. As the CEO of a nonprofit fintech, I care deeply about the potential of technology to increase financial inclusion but agree that we must ensure fairness and transparency for consumers.
Supporting the economic recovery of vulnerable consumers and those hardest hit by the pandemic, by freeing up resources from the Civil Penalty Fund to invest in nonprofits delivering financial coaching and education, as called for by over 230 nonprofit organizations working on the frontlines to protect the assets and financial well being of millions of Americans.
While the challenges ahead of us are myriad, so are the opportunities. The staff of the CFPB are a stellar and dedicated team of public servants, and with inspiring leadership from newly confirmed Director, Rohit Chopra, the Bureau is fully capable of moving us closer to the truly inclusive and equitable financial system this country needs and deserves.