Flirting With Alternatives — Opportunities and Challenges Created by Alternative Data, Modeling, and Technology

Webinaire | August.07.2019 | 2pm - 3pm (Eastern Daylight Time)

Lenders, regulators, and legislators are showing significant interest in how alternative data, sophisticated modeling, and techniques such as machine learning currently are being used in consumer lending and ways they may be used in the future. Innovation holds the potential to expand access to credit and the accuracy of loan approval and pricing. However, some regulators and legislators " including Sen. Elizabeth Warren and other presidential candidates " have expressed concerns about the potential for fair lending consequences stemming from the integration of technology into the decision-making process.

Caroline Stapleton discussed the increasingly complex relationship between lending, technology, and anti-discrimination laws. Panelists discussed the ways in which advances in modeling and the availability of alternative data are revolutionizing lending; takeaways from recent lawsuits, regulatory guidance, and legislative inquiries; observations about the way in which regulators may deal with the challenges; and opportunities posed by innovation in our rapidly evolving world.

Speaker

Caroline Stapleton Partner, Financial & Fintech Advisory, Strategic Advisory & Government Enforcement (SAGE)

Washington, D.C.

See my bio

D:+1 202 461 2904
E: [email protected]

Practice:

Financial & Fintech Advisory
Strategic Advisory & Government Enforcement (SAGE)
Fintech

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Caroline Stapleton Partner

Washington, D.C.

Client-centered experiences are at the heart of Caroline’s practice. She has provided a wide variety of institutions, from fintech startups to multinational banks, with tailored, practical guidance that considers each company’s unique characteristics and strategic goals. Caroline draws on her prior experiences as an attorney at a federal prudential regulator and as the head of compliance at a consumer finance company to give clients a comprehensive picture of the legal risks and opportunities each new matter presents.

Her work on behalf of financial services providers has included:

Providing guidance regarding novel or complex regulatory questions, often in the context of developing new financial products and services
Performing compliance risk assessments of marketing, underwriting, pricing, origination, servicing and loss mitigation activities
Advising banks and supervised lenders with examinations by federal and state regulators, including responding to exam findings, CAMELS ratings, Matters Requiring Attention (MRA/MRIA) and enforcement referrals
Strategically responding to and defending enforcement actions by state and federal regulators, including the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Federal Reserve Board and Department of Justice (DOJ), and, if necessary, negotiating favorable settlements
Developing strategies for bank partnership, state licensing and bank charter opportunities for consumer financial services providers
Conducting internal investigations of suspected misconduct or violations of an institution’s policies and/or regulatory requirements

In these and other representations, Caroline brings strong substantive knowledge of the key federal and state statutes and regulations governing the financial services industry. Her specific areas of focus include:

Fair lending and anti-discrimination laws, including the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA)
Prohibitions on unfair, deceptive or abusive acts or practices (UDAP and UDAAP)
Technical regulatory compliance under federal and state laws governing loan marketing, disclosures, settlement practices, servicing and collection practices, consumer reporting and electronic payments
Federal preemption, including under the National Bank Act
Compliance management best practices and regulatory expectations, including third-party vendor and merchant oversight
Treatment and disclosure of confidential supervisory information (CSI)
State lease-to-own laws and regulations

Prior to joining Orrick, Caroline was senior counsel at Buckley LLP. She also has served as an attorney-advisor in the litigation division of the OCC, where she represented the agency in civil litigation, bank receivership preparation, employment disputes and other administrative contexts. Caroline also gained valuable in-house experience as the head of compliance and assistant general counsel of a Richmond-based consumer finance company.