Impersonation fraud is a growing problem gaining more attention from federal regulators. In this regulatory roundup, learn about one agency’s first case involving charges under a new rule targeting these types of schemes.
Also, learn about two newly minted offices inside one agency tasked with rooting out bad actors internally, and a new committee focused on equity in affordable housing by reading below:
FDIC establishes offices to address harassment, discrimination complaints
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) has established two new, independent offices to handle claims of sexual harassment, discrimination, and other forms of interpersonal misconduct, as well as claims of retaliation. The agency announced the formation of the new offices in the wake of the May publication of the results of an independent investigation into claims of a toxic work culture at the agency. FDIC Chair Martin Gruenberg announced his plans to resign soon after.
The FDIC’s new Office of Professional Conduct (OPC) will investigate and report on complaints of harassment and interpersonal misconduct and will determine appropriate disciplinary actions against anyone violating the FDIC’s anti-harassment or anti-retaliation policies. The FDIC’s new Office of Equal Employment Opportunity (OEEO) will investigate and report complaints of discrimination under the laws enforced by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Both offices will report directly to the FDIC Board of Directors. Learn more about the new offices here.
FTC invokes impersonation rule to stop student loan debt scheme
For the first time since its Impersonation Rule took effect on April 1, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) stopped a student loan debt relief scheme. Scammers pretended to be affiliated with the Department of Education to steal more than $20.3 million from consumers seeking debt relief. The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California temporarily halted the scheme and froze the scammers’ assets at the request of the FTC. The FTC charged the company with falsely claiming to be able to take over consumers’ student loans to get them loan forgiveness. Read more details here.
NCUA charges individuals with theft, embezzlement
The National Credit Union Administration issued one consent and two prohibition notices in June 2024. Two of the individuals are permanently prohibited from participating in the affairs of any federally insured depository institution over charges of theft and embezzlement. A third individual also has been banned from engaging in the business of any federally-insured financial institution. Read more details here.
FHFA announces new federal advisory committee members
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) announced the inaugural members of its Advisory Committee on Affordable, Equitable, and Sustainable Housing. The committee will be tasked with providing non-binding advice to FHFA on how its regulated entities (Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Home Loan Banks) can best serve as a reliable and responsible source of liquidity and funding for housing finance and community investment, including single-family and multifamily housing. FHFA publicly sought representatives from various fields to establish an ensemble with expertise on a wide range of housing topics, including fair housing, tenant advocacy, single-family and multifamily lending and servicing, affordable housing development, capital markets, and technology. The full list of members is available here.