No matter how you spin it or view it, there is no doubt that part of reason why we are in this economic mess is the deregulation of banks in the United States. Enter the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), created by Congress in July 2010 and set to go into effect July 21, 2011. For the first time, the federal government has created an agency to regulate the financial markets. Currently, only state attorney generals play this role. The ultimate goal of the CFPB is to ‘make markets for consumer financial products and services work for Americans—whether they are applying for a mortgage, choosing among credit cards, or using any number of other consumer financial products.’ (See here).
Early this month, the CFPB launched its website, ConsumerFinance.gov. Elizabeth Warren, who headed up the creation of the CFPB, believes that CFPB could have prevented foreclosure fraud, particularly the bank taking advantage of homeowners who actually have good payment history. Let’s hope that we see some change (pun intended) and hope that consumers become more educated as well.