Jedd Bellman

Partner

Washington, D.C.

Jedd Bellman assists banks, mortgage companies, auto lenders, debt collectors, money services businesses and fintechs on a variety of licensing, regulatory and enforcement matters, bringing a wealth of consumer financial services experience gleaned from more than a decade in government service.

Jedd's solutions-based methodology allows clients to gather the appropriate intelligence and legal analysis they need so that they can make informed, risk-based decisions as they navigate the ever-changing state licensing and regulatory ecosystem. His collaborative and strategic approach is designed to maximize outcomes whether evaluating the merits of a transaction or responding to a multi-state enforcement action. 

Jedd was the Assistant Commissioner for Non-Depository Supervision in the Office of the Maryland Commissioner of Financial Regulation, where he coordinated the licensing and supervision of approximately 23,000 individuals and business entities covering the mortgage, student loan, consumer finance, sales finance, debt services, credit reporting and money services industries. He also managed the office’s regulatory investigations and enforcement actions, including playing a leadership role in every significant multistate enforcement matter handled by state regulators during his tenure. Additionally, Jedd oversaw numerous successful legislative and regulatory initiatives.

Prior to that, Jedd served as Counsel and Senior Policy Advisor at the U.S. House of Representatives, where he developed policy and legislative agendas in the areas of housing and financial services, small business and minority business.

Jedd also served as Assistant Attorney General for Maryland, where he handled mortgage fraud and payday lending enforcement prosecutions, as well as mortgage compliance, payday lending and money services business investigations.

Following law school, he served as law clerk to Judge John K. Olson of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of Florida.

  • Financial Services Licensing and Strategy

    • Advising various financial institutions, fintechs, technology companies, payment processors, money transmitters, and virtual currency businesses as to the applicability of federal and state registration/licensing requirements, including analysis of applicable exemptions, development and implementation of licensing strategies, and coordination and negotiation with government entities.
    • Representing fintechs partnering with banks, as they navigate state licensing and regulatory matters, including true-lender, anti-evasion, and other products related risks.
    • Representing large global enterprise seeking to obtain payments licenses throughout the U.S., including navigating corporate structure and governance, regulatory, and enforcement risks attendant thereto.
    • Representing banks seeking foreign qualification to operate in certain U.S. jurisdictions.

    Financial Services Regulatory and Supervisory

    • Advising various financial institutions, fintechs, technology companies, payment processors, money transmitters, and virtual currency businesses on supervisory matters, including reporting obligations, examinations, updates to laws, rules, and regulations, and other regulatory matters.
    • Advising national student loan lender on updates to template loan agreements, including compliance with usury requirements, lending restrictions, and state-based disclosure requirements, and evaluating remedial measures attendant thereto.
    • Advising various financial institutions and fintechs on legislative and regulatory options, including drafting legislative proposals and providing policy analysis and guidance during legislative cycles.
    • Advising automated mortgage origination platform on navigating state examinations involving areas of first impression and conflicts of law and regulatory obligations.

    Financial Services Investigations and Enforcement

    • Representing large, medium, and small financial institutions and fintechs across the consumer financial services spectrum before numerous state financial regulatory agencies, including obtaining consensual resolutions to pending enforcement matters.
    • Representing large financial institutions and fintechs in settling complex enforcement matters with numerous state financial regulators in coordination with multi-state governing bodies, such as the Multi-State Mortgage Committee (MMC) and the Multi-State MSB Examination Taskforce (MMET).
    • Representing financial institutions and fintechs and their control persons in navigating state-specific charges imposing individual liability for conduct of the regulated entities.
    • Representing high-profile social media companies in navigating regulatory inquiries involving issues of first impression.
    • Representing large broker-dealer in settling alleged unlicensed money transmission activity before state payments regulator.
    • Representing large BaaS entity in a state regulatory inquiry evaluating the supervisory and licensing implications involving banks and their service providers.
    • Representing buy know pay later provider in settling alleged unlicensed lending activity with state regulatory agency, including facilitating the obtainment of appropriate lending license as part of the consensual resolution.

    Financial Services Transactional

    • Advising large private equity funds as regulatory counsel in evaluating possible transactions involving financial services entities.
    • Representing purchaser as regulatory counsel in a billion-dollar transaction involving a payments company.
    • Representing seller as regulatory counsel in multi-billion-dollar complex transaction involving a payments company, including assisting licensed subsidiary in obtaining regulatory approvals for change of control.
    • Representing large private equity fund as regulatory counsel involving a multi-million dollar forward-flow agreement to purchase consumer debt.

    Financial Services Restructuring and Winddown

    • Representing large mortgage company as regulatory counsel in bankruptcy case, including advising on the regulatory implications of selling assets for the benefit of the estate, winding down operations, coordinating with state regulators through the Multi-State Mortgage Committee (MMC), communicating with federal regulatory agencies, and effectively surrendering licenses in a coordinated and strategic manner.
    • Representing failed payments company in coordinating with state regulators through the Multi-State MSB Examination Taskforce (MMET), negotiating interim and final enforcement resolutions, finalizing surrender of licenses, and mitigating risks to control persons.