This week, members of two U.S. Congressional Committees sent a formal letter to CFPB Director Richard Cordray outlining serious concerns and problems with the new agency. In particular, the Committees requested more information regarding the departure of Raj Date (the agency’s former second-in-command) and the creation of his new “consumer finance advisory” firm, Fenway Summer LLC.
In January, Date assisted in the Bureau’s issuing of its final rule on “qualified mortgages,” adopting strict criteria for the loans. By mid-March, Date had vacated his post at the CFPB and formed Fenway Summer to help “those borrowers who do not meet the standards for ‘qualified mortgages’ as set by the CFPB under rules.”
As former Deputy Director of the CFPB, Date has leveraged his unique, insider knowledge of the industry and the Bureau for the profit of his new company. Date has thus far recruited at least five other CFPB employees to join him at Fenway Summer.
The letter states:
“…former CFPB employees are now offering financial products in a market sector created by the very rules they were in a position to influence while working in senior leadership positions at the CFPB.”
Members of Congress are concerned that Date and his colleagues are seeking to “…profit from the rules they helped create,” which they surmise could ultimately harm consumers.