OCC Plans Rule to Define Valid Bank-Fintech Partnerships

The OCC is preparing a rule to establish bright lines between legitimate bank-fintech partnerships and “rent-a-charter” schemes in which online lenders use bank relationships to evade state interest rate caps, the agency’s acting director said.

A proposal on the “true lender” doctrine would help stem litigation that has plagued the fintech lending industry, acting Comptroller of the Currency Brian Brooks said Thursday.

“The whole issue is ‘did the bank actually make the loan or was this some kind of a sham?’” Brooks said during a webinar hosted by the Online Lending Policy Institute.

Opponents to bank partnerships with non-banks, including ...