Bank of America joined the club of consumer abusers – Wells Fargo had been the well-established leader of this club and the poster-child for abusive consumer practices. 

For years, Bank of America avoided federal enforcement for abuses and could distinguish itself from the poster-child, Wells Fargo.  Bank of America’s conduct is inexplicable.

In response to the Wells Fargo scandal, you would have expected that Bank of America (and other major banks) would have double-checked its own consumer practices to ensure that they were not engaged in similar misconduct.  Instead, it appears that Bank of America, like many other banks, just ignored the possibility and blithely continued on its way in the marketplace.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) and the Office of Comptroller of the Currency (“OCC”) announced coordinated enforcement actions and settlements. Bank of America agreed to pay CFPB $190 for consumer harms and penalties, and $60 million to the OCC in penalties.

In this Episode, Michael Volkov reviews the CFPB and OCC enforcement settlement.