Dive Brief:

• Three Democratic U.S. senators wrote an open letter on Wednesday to Rohit Chopra, director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, expressing support for a proposed rule that would let the bureau oversee digital payment apps, such as Zelle and Venmo. 
• The letter, from Sens. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, came just a day after Republican Congressmen Patrick McHenry of North Carolina, French Hill of Arkansas and Mike Flood of Nebraska wrote to Chopra. The three lawmakers asked for an additional sixty days to comment on the proposed rule.
• “This rule would introduce more regulatory uncertainty into the payment industry, particularly with respect to third-party service providers and digital asset companies,” the three Republican Congress members wrote in their letter.

Dive Insight:

The dueling letters come nearly a month after the deadline for comment on the proposed rule passed. The rule, first proposed by the CFPB last November, would allow the bureau to oversee Google, Apple and at least 15 other companies that provide digital payment services.

The three senators said in their letter that fraud and scams were “rampant” on payment apps. “Consumers reported over $100 million in fraudulent (unauthorized) transactions on Cash App and $57 million on Venmo in 2022,” the letter said. 

Tuesday’s letter from Republicans echoes one sent by 20 GOP Congress members during the comment period for the proposed rule. And the three signatories of the recent letter were part of that original group. 

A group of seven Democratic representatives also sent a letter raising concerns about the proposed rule during the comment period, but have not followed up since.

Spokespeople for the lawmakers didn’t immediately respond to questions regarding their open letters to the CFPB. 

When asked about the Republicans’ letter, a CFPB spokesperson said, “We have received the letter and are reviewing it.” The bureau did not immediately respond to questions about the letter from Senate Democrats.