October 8, 2021

Photo: Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Hello and welcome to Protocol | Fintech! This Friday: Rohit Chopra returns to the CFPB, questions swirl about Tether's reserves, and a bank CEO doesn't care to share (data).
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Rohit Chopra's confirmation as the new boss of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau sets the stage for his return to the watchdog agency he helped build about a decade ago.
One company may cheer the move: Facebook, the tech giant he repeatedly accused of abuse when he served on the Federal Trade Commission, a post he's now giving up.
Chopra is expected to "restore the CFPB to its former glory," Catherine Brown, a partner at Klaros Group, told Protocol. Not all fintechs will find that glorious.
Banks and fintechs should brace themselves for what Facebook endured: intense scrutiny and aggressive enforcement. Chopra's hard-charging style made him known as one of the most pugnacious regulators in Washington.
"A kind of adversarial relationship is necessary." That's how Chopra described his leadership style — not as a regulator, but as Harvard student council president. He frequently butted heads with the campus administration in the early 2000s. "There's no advantage to being a pushover," he once declared.
"Chopra's going to be driving the train faster," said Allyson Baker, a former CFPB attorney. Critics said the agency had pulled back from its original mission under a Trump-appointed director who resigned in January. Chopra is expected to revive the bureau's watchdog role.
"I hear the panic in their voices as they worry about their financial future," Chopra said seven years ago of his role as the CFPB's student loans ombudsman. He said he routinely got calls and emails from people "drowning in debt." He's back to deal with an even more dire situation as the economy recovers unevenly from the pandemic: At a confirmation hearing in March, he noted: "We must not forget that the financial lives of millions of Americans are in ruin."
-- Benjamin Pimentel
Business is more global than ever, but cross-border payments remain mired in older systems. Can new technologies leapfrog the past? Protocol | Fintech editor Owen Thomas speaks with Patreon's Priya Sanger and Wise's Ryan Zagone about the challenges and opportunities ahead. Also, don't miss the launch of our first Fintech Power Index, which ranks the key players in payments. Tune in at 10 a.m PT / 1 p.m. ET on Oct. 20. RSVP here.
Investment banking firms that fully implement CRM technology are flourishing. Banks that can effectively leverage their network have a huge advantage at both sourcing and executing deals. Learn how you can do the same.
DJ Justin Blau sees music's future in crypto. The musician, known as 3LAU, talks about Royal, a new marketplace for music NFTs where fans can take ownership stakes in their favorite songs.
PayPal's "buy now, pay later" game plan. Greg Lisiewski, general manager of PayPal's global pay-later business, explains why the payments giant fell behind in the hot ecommerce trend.
Banks and fintechs agree screen scraping has to go. The Financial Data Exchange was created to develop a common standard for API access to consumer financial data.
Chinese-language indie media's NFT moment. Independent Chinese-language media companies are leading the charge in embracing the new technology.
The DOJ is launching a crypto enforcement team. The Justice Department said the new team will go after "criminal actors" using cryptocurrencies and related services.
Public.com is adding crypto. The online brokerage said it will let users buy, sell and hold cryptocurrencies.
Banks want to cut Apple Pay fees. They're pushing Visa to reduce the surcharge they have to pay Apple for recurring transactions.
What fintech trend are you most excited about?
Financial inclusion! I am so excited to see the next generation of fintech creating more onramps for marginalized consumers. COVID-19 revealed major gaps in our financial infrastructure, such as capital markets and ACH payments distribution. This was a wakeup call for banks and financial institutions to accelerate their digital transformation roadmap.
What's your advice to younger technologists who want to build a career in this field?
When I was pivoting from internal audit to startups, I built a simple framework to keep me focused on breaking in. Am I passionate about the mission and vision? Is this an entrepreneurial place? Is this the right role?
It took 100 cold emails, 50 rejections and a handful of final rounds to get to the offer that mattered at CB Insights.
While my framework has evolved over the course of my career, persistence, patience and embracing pivots are still the ultimate triple threat, and the most important qualities for breaking in and sustaining a career in fintech.
What's one piece of reading that you think should be a requirement for those in the industry?
Clay Christensen's "How Will You Measure Your Life?" is about finding what motivates you and remaining true to those values. I am not in fintech because I am motivated by money; rather, I'm motivated by the economic impact I can have by building accessible financial services and leveling the playing field for marginalized consumers.
In recent years, CRM technology has evolved. What was once a contact storage tool is now the driving force behind leading financial firms. Relationship intelligence means fully leveraging your bank's collective network. Get intros to more sellers, stay in front of more buyers, and never worry about nurturing your important relationships.
That's how much value some Coinbase bonds have lost since the crypto marketplace issued $2 billion in debt in September.
Thanks for reading — see you Tuesday!
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