The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) today announced its first-ever Tech Sprints to reduce regulatory burden and improve consumer understanding of financial services. The Bureau’s Tech Sprints program will bring together regulators, technologists, software providers, consumer groups, and financial institutions to develop technological solutions to shared compliance challenges. The first Tech Sprint will kick off in October with another in March 2021.
Participants in the October 5-9, 2020, Tech Sprint will be asked to improve upon existing consumer disclosures. Many federal consumer financial laws were written in a paper-based age. The use of digital technology and alternative delivery mechanisms (e.g., online or mobile) for disclosure content may enable greater consumer engagement and understanding. Participants in this Tech Sprint will design innovative electronic methods for informing consumers about adverse credit actions, including from the use of algorithms. Under federal law, applicants for credit are generally entitled to receive the principal reasons why creditors take adverse action, and when creditors use a credit score, key factors adversely affecting that score.
The March 22-26, 2021, Tech Sprint will focus on the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) platform and submission process, which the Bureau developed and operates on behalf of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council agencies and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Certain lending institutions are required by regulation to report mortgage loan data that, combined, provide the most comprehensive publicly available information on nationwide mortgage market activity. Tech Sprint participants may help develop new tools to address compliance challenges and improve the filing process, and may work to further develop the HMDA Platform’s Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) to increase efficiency and lower cost.
“The Bureau’s Tech Sprints program offers an opportunity for financial companies, technology experts, programmers, consumer groups, and regulators to collaborate and find innovative ways to address common challenges that will result in better regulatory compliance and help consumers to make better, more informed financial decisions,” said Director Kathleen L. Kraninger. “I am excited that the CFPB is leading in government innovation by launching these Tech Sprints.”
The Bureau issued a request for information in September 2019, soliciting potential Tech Sprint topics.
More information about the Tech Sprints:
Tech Sprints landing page: https://www.consumerfinance.gov/policy-compliance/innovation/cfpb-tech-sprints/
E-Disclosures Tech Sprint: https://www.consumerfinance.gov/policy-compliance/innovation/cfpb-tech-sprints/electronic-disclosures-tech-sprint/
HMDA Tech Sprint: https://www.consumerfinance.gov/policy-compliance/innovation/cfpb-tech-sprints/home-mortgage-disclosure-act-tech-sprint/