Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray named his Chief of Staff Leandra English as acting director last week following Cordray’s announcement that he will resign from the role by the end of the month.
As such, the American Financial Services Association (AFSA) issued the following statement from President and Chief Executive Christ Stinebert on Cordray’s succession plan:
“[Last week’s] actions by former CFPB Director Richard Cordray in appointing his own acting director to lead the bureau reinforces the problematic nature of having a single and completely unaccountable leader. The decision to choose who should lead the country’s consumer protection agency, and confusion that’s been caused by Cordray’s own ‘succession plan,’ should not be made by one individual and for this reason, AFSA has long advocated the need for a bipartisan commission.”
Shortly after Cordray’s announcement of the succession plan, President Donald Trump named Mick Mulvaney, director of the Office of Management and Budget, to the job.
AFSA’s Stinebert issued the following statement on Mulvaney’s appointment:
“AFSA welcomes the Trump Administration’s appointment of OMB Director Mick Mulvaney to serve as Acting Director of the CFPB following [last week’s] resignation of Director Richard Cordray. Mulvaney’s appointment as acting director will ultimately ensure a smooth transition to a permanent director, nominated by the President, who will carry on the priorities of the administration.
“In his role as OMB Director, as well as having served on the House Financial Services Committee, Director Mulvaney has demonstrated that he understands the need for effective and fair regulation. Nowhere is that balanced approach more needed than at the CFPB, an agency that has all too often regulated by press releases. AFSA believes that Mulvaney will lead the CFPB in a fashion that gives financial services providers clear guidelines as opposed to guesswork and allows them to better serve their customers.”
About AFSA
Based in Washington, D.C., the American Financial Services Association (AFSA), now in its 101st year, is the national trade association for the consumer credit industry, committed to protecting access to credit and consumer choice. Its 400 members include traditional installment lenders, vehicle finance/leasing companies, consumer and commercial finance companies, mortgage lenders and servicers, payment card issuers, industrial banks and industry suppliers. For more information, visit www.afsaonline.org.
