The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or CFPB, has adopted a rule to codify protections for privileged information submitted to the CFPB by the financial institutions it regulates.
In January 2012, the CFPB advised the institutions that it supervises that the submission of privileged information to the CFPB does not waive any applicable privilege with respect to third parties. The CFPB believes the new rule provides supervised entities further assurances that providing privileged information to the CFPB will not adversely affect the confidentiality of such information. According to the CFPB, the new rule also makes clear that the CFPB’s transfer of privileged information to another Federal or State agency does not result in a waiver of any applicable privilege.
The CFPB believes the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act provided the CFPB with the authority to issue rules necessary or appropriate to enable the Bureau to fulfill its obligations to protect consumers of financial products and services. The CFPB also believes the Dodd-Frank Act also specifically provided the CFPB with authority to issue rules regarding the confidential treatment of information obtained by the CFPB.
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