On June 29, James Williams and Michaela Bevan published "CFPB Makes Significant Changes to Regulation B" in Finastra. The following is an excerpt:
The CFPB recently made the most significant change to Regulation B since its implementation. On April 22, 2026, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) published a final rule (the "Final Rule") amending various provisions of Regulation B, which implements the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA). The Final Rule makes three key changes:
- It effectively eliminates disparate impact as a theory of liability under ECOA.
- It narrows ECOA's prohibition on "discouragement" to focus on statements of intent to discriminate rather than negative consumer impressions or encouraging statements directed at certain groups of consumers.
- It prohibits for-profit creditors from using certain prohibited basis characteristics as common characteristics in Special Purpose Credit Programs (SPCPs), among other new requirements.