Credit card lenders like Chase, as well as other financial services providers, strongly oppose the establishment of a consumer financial watchdog because it could expand the same type of consumer protections for other products they market, such as overdraft loans, tax refund anticipation loans, and other high-cost products with hidden fees.
It’s time to prioritize consumers’ long-term financial security over financial institutions’ short-term profits. Unless meaningful consumer protections are established, such as the Consumer Financial Protection Agency currently being debated in Congress, record-high levels of non-productive debt will continue to drive consumer bankruptcies.