CFPB Realigns Supervision Department

In advance of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) active supervision and examination of debt collection agencies, the Bureau announced Monday that it has realigned its Supervision department into two units: Supervision Examinations and Supervision Policy.

Previously, the CFPB’s Supervision unit at its Washington, DC headquarters was organized into offices for Nonbank and Large Bank Supervision. When the Bureau officially launched in 2011, its Supervision unit took over the examination duties for large banks and thrifts. Since then, it has launched nonbank supervision programs for most of the industries it covers.

“We have now successfully launched supervision programs for both nonbanks and large banks,” the CFPB wrote on its blog. “Now our goal is to make these programs as efficient and effective as possible, and this reorganization will help us do that.”

The Examinations team will focus on many of the processes and work vital both to the team at Headquarters and to examiners throughout the country. The team will oversee CFPB efforts to: recruit, train, and commission examiners; ensure policies and procedures are followed; and plan and execute examinations. The four regional offices will report to Supervision Examinations, and Paul Sanford will be the Acting Assistant Director of this Office.

The Policy team will ensure that policy decisions for supervision are consistent with both the law and the Bureau’s mission, and that they are consistent across markets, charters, and regions. The CFPB is organizing this office by product or service market rather than by the type of financial institution. Each of these teams will be responsible for developing supervision strategy and policy across both bank and nonbank markets. Peggy Twohig will be the Assistant Director of this Office.