Hi ,
It’s hard for anyone to resist the charms of a puppy – even as prices of certain breeds spike into the thousands of dollars, putting our heart and our wallet in conflict.
Some pet stores have found a sneaky and dangerous way to solve the conflict between our emotions and our budget. By partnering with a retail lender called EasyPay that charges interest rates as high as 179%, these pet shops are keeping sales high and leaving families mired in debt.
Triple-digit interest rates are supposed to be illegal in most states. But EasyPay uses something called the Rent-a-Bank loophole to get around state consumer protection laws by borrowing Utah-based TAB Bank’s federal banking charter. As flagrantly as this practice defies the intention of state laws and the authority of state lawmakers, it is – as of right now – allowed by federal regulators.
But it does not have to be this way. The FDIC has the power to put an end to the high-cost financing of puppies, as well as other partnerships that also circumvent state interest rate caps, by simply changing its rules.
The FDIC needs to know that the American public won’t stand for this any longer.
Sign our petition to urge the FDIC to close the rent-a-bank loophole.
|
|
