Regulation
Virginia Passes Landmark Sales-Based Financing Bill
March 7, 2022
The Virginia State legislature unanimously passed HB1027 on Monday, a law aimed squarely at revenue-based financing providers. Virginia Delegate Kathy Tran (D) celebrated the passage on twitter by saying that the law will “protect small business owners from merchant cash advances.”
The law will require “a provider or broker of sales-based financing to register with the State Corporation Commission (the Commission) in accordance with procedures established by the Commission,” the legislative summary reads. Furthermore, it will require “a sales-based financing provider to provide certain disclosures to a recipient at the time of extending a specific offer of sales-based financing.”
That is just the tip of the iceberg. The bill’s language changed somewhat since it was first introduced in January.
Despite some industry pushback, there was no opposition to the bill on either side of the political aisle and it passed through both chambers unanimously. Virginia has become the third state, following California and New York, to pass a commercial financing disclosure law.
Today, we had the final vote on my bill HB1027 – it passed unanimously and is headed to the Governor! We’re taking key steps to protect small business owners from merchant cash advances, a predatory financial practice. Thanks to @TCIFiscal @VPLC @rbrexperience for your support! pic.twitter.com/Wv8NRL9SOp
— Kathy Tran (@KathyKLTran) March 8, 2022
Delegate Tran thanked The Commonwealth Institute, the Virginia Poverty Law Center, and the Richmond Black Restaurant Experience for their support in making the law happen. The bill now just needs the governor’s signature to become law.
Connecticut Revives Commercial Financing Disclosure Bill
March 3, 2022The State of Connecticut has resurrected its commercial financing disclosure bill, adding to the pile of states doing the same. Senate Bill 272 is a throwback to earlier versions of legislative drafting in that it contains the term “double dipping.”
The bill was only just reintroduced today, March 3rd, where it has been referred to the Joint Committee on Banking. When it was raised last year, it was met with fierce opposition.
The full text of the bill can be read here.
Even More Commercial Financing Disclosure Bills Emerge Across Additional States
February 9, 2022
It’s not just New York, New Jersey, California, Virginia, and Missouri with disclosure legislation out there anymore.
Utah – On Monday, the State Senate introduced the Commercial Financing Registration and Disclosure bill.
Maryland – On Monday, the State Senate introduced the Commercial Financing Transactions bill.
Mississippi – Last week, the State legislature introduced two commercial financing disclosure bills but both died in committee.
The Maryland Bill is the latest iteration of a multi-year campaign to pass legislation aimed at restricting MCAs in the state.
The bill in Virginia is still continuing to advance.
The bills in New York and California have already long ago passed and implementation of them as laws is still underway. The New York Department of Financial Services is expected to provide an updated proposal by the end of next month.
FDIC Chair Says Community Banks are the Backbone of SMB Lending
February 4, 2022
In a Bipartisan Policy Center forum, outgoing FDIC Chairperson Jelena McWilliams spoke on the future of small business lending post-pandemic. According to her, the future of the industry isn’t in brokering different types of products, but rather merchants relying on community banks to develop and provide interpersonal relationships with businesses who are seeking access to capital.
“Small business lending, which is especially important to community banks, will continue to grow,” said McWilliams. “We monitor these developments through our call report data, and we report it on a quarterly basis. Community banks are a real player in the small business lending space. They are a key resource to small businesses needing credit, they are in a niche area. In most cases, they are more successful lending to small businesses than larger banks.”
McWilliams referenced a study that was published by the FDIC in 2020 dubbed the ‘FDIC Community Banking Study’ that found community banks were playing a much larger role in small business lending than larger banks. According to the study that McWilliams referenced, 36% of small business loans are written by community banks; more than double their share of the industry’s total loan products, which is around 15%.
It seems to show that the belief of regulators is that smaller banks can leverage their size to put a face to the loan. Speaking about fintech and its impact on the lending space, McWilliams stressed that a well-rounded financial product has to have a face to it.
“That personal touch community banks bring to the table is what allows them to be really good in this space, and to actually expand relationships between banks and borrowers. So I think that small business lending today I think they are in a very good place.”
McWilliams concluded her comments on the state of small business lending in a reflection of the overall economy, drawing a connection between the financial health of small businesses and the overall economy post-pandemic.
“Of course, you can never have enough credit or capital to have a vibrant economy and more is better as long as its safe and sound and underwritten well, but I would say that for all the concerns we had at the beginning of the pandemic with so many small businesses not being able to survive and shutting their doors down, we are actually on a really good trajectory in small business lending at this point in time.”
Missouri Introduces Commercial Financing Disclosure Bill
January 25, 2022Add Missouri to the list of states proposing mandatory disclosures in commercial financing transactions.
[See: New York, California, New Jersey, Virginia, North Carolina]
Missouri’s SB 963 is different from bills in other states in that it does not seek the disclosure of an annual percentage rate. Adopting a simpler approach, SB 963 would require commercial financing companies to disclose:
1. The total amount of funds provided
2. The total amount of funds disbursed
3. The total amount to be paid
4. The total dollar cost
5. The manner, frequency, and amount of each payment
6. Prepayment costs or discounts
7. Whether or not a broker will be compensated
The bill was introduced by State Senator Justin Brown (R).
New Jersey Reintroduces Commercial Financing APR Disclosure Bill
January 20, 2022
Members of New Jersey’s state legislature are trying for a fifth year in a row to advance a commercial financing APR disclosure bill. Senate Bill 819 was introduced on January 18th. Senate Majority Whip Troy Singleton (D) is the primary sponsor.
Similar to what was just introduced in the Virginia legislature, the bill is mainly aimed at “sales-based financing.”
“Sales-based financing means a transaction that is repaid by the recipient to the provider, over time and as a percentage of sales or revenue, in which the payment amount may increase or decrease according to the volume of sales made or revenue received by the recipient. ‘Sales-based financing’ includes a true-up mechanism where the financing is repaid as a fixed payment but provides for a reconciliation process that adjusts the payment to an amount that is a percentage of sales or revenue.”
Virginia Hops on the Commercial Finance APR Disclosure Bandwagon
January 14, 2022Add Virginia to the list of states introducing initiatives to codify disclosures in commercial finance. Virginia House Bill 1027 is aimed squarely at “sales-based financing providers.”
The Virginia bill calls for an estimated APR to be disclosed on sales-based financing contracts using methods conceived in New York’s recent legislation.
As has been witnessed, however, New York’s regulators recently discovered weaknesses in their own law.
The Virginia bill is in its very early stages. It was introduced on Wednesday, January 12th by Delegate Kathy K.L. Tran (D).
Transition to NMLS Extension Postponed to March 15, 2022
December 21, 2021With permission for reprint from Leasing News and credit to Ken Greene
The California DFPI has extended the deadline for transitioning to the NMLS to March 15, 2022 for all those with a California license.
I had a long talk with the DFPI NMLS specialist and the agency is well aware that the transition process is not simple, and that many companies are having difficulty with it. I was also advised that if an application is pending but not approved when the deadline passes, your license will not be revoked. That is also good news.
This three-month extension should give everyone sufficient time to get the transition done. The process is confusing, but the folks at the DFPI are quite helpful. I urge anyone having difficulty to call them. Still, don’t wait until the last minute!
Here is the announcement:
Extension – NMLS Transition for California Financing Law Licensees: Deadline Extended to March 15, 2022
Notice of Extension
The deadline for licensees under the California Financing Law not currently on NMLS to transition onto NMLS is extended to March 15, 2022.
All licensees not yet on NMLS must establish an account in NMLS and submit their information through NMLS on or before the March 15, 2022 deadline.
Begin by Establishing an Account in NMLS
Licensees seeking to transition onto NMLS may access NMLS’s website here. From this homepage, select the button for “Getting Started – Company.”
To facilitate creating an account in NMLS, all transitioning CFL licensees should be familiar with the documentation required when setting up the account. This NMLS Account Creation Help Document describes step-by-step how to create an NMLS account and the documents needed.
Input Licensee Information
After establishing an account, a licensee must input its information on two electronic forms (three electronic forms if the licensee has branch locations). Information about the licensee is entered on the “Company Form,” MU1. Information about each key personnel (owners, officers, directors, managing members, partners, etc.) is entered on the “Individual Form,” MU2. Information about branch locations/licenses is entered on the “Branch Form,” MU3. After completing the applicable information, submit the information through NMLS.
NMLS has state-specific checklists to assist licensees transitioning onto NMLS, and FAQs for guidance on transitioning a license onto NMLS.
Questions
For questions regarding the creation of an account in NMLS, contact the NMLS Call Center at (855) 665-7123. For questions regarding transitioning a CFL license onto NMLS, contact DFPI at CFL.Inquiries@dfpi.ca.gov or (866) 275-2677.
Finally, for those of you who missed it, here is a link to my Leasing News article from 12/8/21 outlining the CFL to NMLS transition process:
https://leasingnews.org/archives/Nov2021/11_15.htm#cfl
Ken Greene Leasing & Finance Observations
https://leasingnews.org/Pages/greene_observations.html
Ken Greene
Tel: 818.575.9095
Fax: 805.435.7464
ken@kengreenelaw.com
Alternate: kengreenelaw@outlook.com
