[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 214 (Monday, November 7, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67023-67024]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-24214]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

BUREAU OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION

[Docket No. CFPB-2021-0017]


Notice and Request for Comment Regarding the CFPB's Inquiry Into 
Big Tech Payment Platforms

AGENCY: Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection.

ACTION: Notice; request for comment.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: On October 21, 2021, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau 
(Bureau or CFPB) ordered six large technology companies operating 
payments systems in the United States to provide information about 
certain of their business practices. Accompanying the orders, the 
Director of the Bureau issued a statement and invited interested 
parties to submit comments to inform the Bureau's inquiry. The 
statement and request for comment was published in the Federal Register 
on November 5, 2021, in a document titled, ``Notice and Request for 
Comment Regarding the CFPB's Inquiry into Big Tech Payment Platforms.'' 
The Bureau has determined that it is appropriate to re-open the docket 
for 30 days from Federal Register publication and add two questions.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before December 7, 2022.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CFPB-2021-
0017, by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Email: [email protected]. Include Docket No. 
CFPB-2021-0017 in the subject line of the message.
     Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier: Comment Intake--Statement into 
Big Tech Payment Platforms, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, c/o 
Legal Division Docket Manager, 1700 G Street NW, Washington, DC 20552. 
Because paper mail in the Washington, DC area and at the Bureau is 
subject to delay, commenters are encouraged to submit comments 
electronically.
    Instructions: The Bureau encourages the early submission of 
comments. Please note the number of the topic on which you are 
commenting at the top of each response (you do not need to address all 
topics). All submissions should include document title and docket 
number. In general, all comments received will be posted without change 
to https://www.regulations.gov. All comments, including attachments and 
other supporting materials, will become part of the public record and 
subject to public disclosure. Proprietary information or sensitive 
personal information, such as account numbers or Social Security 
numbers, or names of other individuals, should not be included. 
Comments will not be edited to remove any identifying or contact 
information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Amy Zirkle, Program Manager for 
Payments & Deposits, (202) 435-7505. If you require this document in an 
alternative electronic format, please contact 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On October 21, 2021, the CFPB ordered six 
large technology companies operating payments systems in the United 
States to provide information about certain of their business 
practices. Accompanying the orders, the Director of the Bureau issued a 
statement and invited interested parties to submit comments to inform 
the inquiry. The statement and request for comment were published in 
the Federal Register on November 5, 2021,\1\ in a document titled 
``Notice and Request for Comment

[[Page 67024]]

Regarding the CFPB's Inquiry into Big Tech Payment Platforms.''
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ 86 FR 61182 (Nov. 5, 2021).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The CFPB has determined that it is appropriate to re-open the 
comment period to further inform the inquiry described by the Director 
in his October 21, 2021 Statement:
    Faster, friction-less, and cheaper payment systems offer 
significant potential benefits to consumers, workers, their families, 
and small businesses in the United States. For example, families can 
send money to friends without delay, or to relatives overseas at lower 
costs. Fast payment systems can also help small businesses succeed with 
quicker transactions, lower cost, and more revenue conversion. And 
faster settlement can reduce the need for families and businesses to 
borrow.
    But payments businesses are network businesses and can gain 
tremendous scale and market power, potentially posing new risks and 
undermining fair competition. Furthermore, knowing what we spend our 
money on is a valuable source of data on consumer behavior. This data 
can be monetized by companies that seek to profit from behavioral 
targeting, particularly around advertising and e-commerce. That many 
Big Tech companies aspire to grow in this space only heightens these 
concerns.
    In China, we can already see the long-term implications of these 
forces. Alipay and WeChat Pay are deeply imbedded into the lives of the 
Chinese public, combining messaging, e-commerce and payment 
functionality into super-apps. In such a market, consumers have little 
choice but to use these apps and little market power to shape how their 
data is used.
    Today the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has ordered 
six technology platforms offering payment services to turn over 
information about their products, plans and practices when it comes to 
payments. The orders were issued to Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, 
Square, and PayPal. The CFPB will also study the practices of the 
Chinese tech giants that offer payments services, such as WeChat Pay 
and Alipay.
    Congress has tasked the CFPB with ensuring that markets for 
consumer financial products and services are fair, transparent, and 
competitive. To that end, it has authorized the CFPB to require 
participants in the marketplace to provide information that help the 
Bureau monitor risks to consumers and to publish aggregated findings 
that are in the public interest.
    Little is known publicly about how Big Tech companies will exploit 
their payments platforms. For example, will the operators engage in 
invasive financial surveillance and combine the data they collect on 
consumers with their geolocation and browsing data? \2\ Will they in 
turn use this data to deepen behavioral advertising, engage in price 
discrimination, or sell to third parties?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ In 2019, I joined global privacy regulators to seek 
information about Facebook's Libra project. At the time, the company 
failed to substantively respond. See https://www.priv.gc.ca/en/opc-news/speeches/2019/s-d_190805/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Will these companies operate their payment platforms in a manner 
that interferes with fair, transparent, and competitive markets? Will 
the payment platforms be truly neutral, or will they use their scale to 
extract rents from market participants? Will small businesses feel 
coerced into participating in the payment platform out of fear of being 
suppressed or hidden in search or product listings? If these tech 
companies enter a market that competes with other providers on the 
platform, will these providers be removed or otherwise disadvantaged? 
What factors will these tech companies use when disqualifying or 
delisting an individual or business from participating on the platform?
    Finally, how will these payment platforms ensure that key consumer 
protections are adhered to? How effectively do they manage complaints, 
disputes and errors? Are they sufficiently staffed to ensure adequate 
steps are taken to address consumer protection and provide responsive 
customer service when things go wrong? \3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ The law currently provides for a number of safeguards in the 
payments sector, including but not limited to the Electronic Fund 
Transfer Act, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, and the Consumer Financial 
Protection Act.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The CFPB's inquiry will help to inform regulators and policymakers 
about the future of our payments system. Importantly, it will also 
yield insights that may help the CFPB to implement other statutory 
responsibilities, including any potential rulemaking under Section 1033 
of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The 
CFPB's orders build on the efforts of the Federal Trade Commission's 
work to shed light on the business practices of the largest technology 
companies in the world.
    The CFPB's inquiry is one of many efforts within the Federal 
Reserve System to plan for the future of real-time payments and to 
ensure a fair and competitive payments system in our country. The 
Bureau intends to open a Federal Register docket to invite public 
comment. I invite any interested parties to submit comments to inform 
the agency's inquiry.
    In addition, the Bureau is inviting comment on the following 
questions related to the Bureau's inquiry:
    1. What fees, fines, or other penalties do large technology 
companies assess on users of their payment platforms, including for:
    a. Purported violations of the technology companies' acceptable use 
policies; or
    b. Any other conduct?
    2. Do the acceptable use policies for technology companies' payment 
platforms include provisions that can restrict access to their 
platforms? If so, under what circumstances can the technology companies 
restrict access to their platforms?
    Re-opening the comment period will provide additional opportunity 
for the public to prepare comments related to this inquiry and to 
comment on the additional questions. Therefore, the CFPB is re-opening 
the comment period for an additional 30 days.

Rohit Chopra,
Director, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
[FR Doc. 2022-24214 Filed 11-4-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4810-AM-P