NEW POLL: Nearly Ninety Percent Of Americans Concerned That Fintech & Crypto Firms Do Not Have Appropriate Level of Federal Regulations

December 13, 2022

A new poll released today by the Consumer Bankers Association (CBA) found that Americans believe Congress and the CFPB need to do more to ensure large fintech and crypto firms are subject to increased oversight by federal regulators. The poll, conducted among US adults earlier this month, also found that when it comes to protecting their money, consumers overwhelmingly trust banks over these other financial services providers.

In a new statement, CBA President & CEO Lindsey Johnson said:

“These findings demonstrate that consumers want and need policymakers to ensure large financial services providers operate within the well-regulated, well-supervised financial system. Doing so will provide hardworking Americans the ability to safely benefit from innovations in the highly competitive financial marketplace, with the necessary regulatory transparency, oversight, and consumer protections.”

Key Findings

The vast majority of Americans are concerned that crypto and fintech firms aren’t held to the same federal regulatory standards as traditional banks

  • 86% are at least somewhat or extremely concerned by the regulatory disparity.

By a 2:1 margin, Americans believe Congress and the CFPB need to do more to protect fintech and crypto users from harm and abuse

  • 56% want Washington to implement more safeguards compared to 24% who believe Congress and the CFPB are doing enough - a 32-point difference.
  • Crypto users themselves were among the most supportive audiences on this question with 68% supporting additional protection from policymakers.

Americans trust banks over crypto and fintech firms to protect their money by significant margins

  • When asked who they trust most to protect their money, nearly 70% of Americans chose banks. Compared to crypto and fintech firms (5% and 3%, respectively), FDIC-insured banks hold a 13:1 advantage.

The online poll of 1,041 US adults was conducted by ClearPath Strategies between December 2-4, 2022. Additional information regarding the poll, including crosstabs, methodology, and more is available HERE.

CBA Advocacy

The importance of innovation in financial service offerings and products to meet the needs of consumers and to maintain America’s financial competitiveness, cannot be overstated. But neither can the importance of transparency, market stability, and consumer protection. CBA has long called on policymakers to recognize and respond to the risks associated with the rapid growth of large fintech and other large non-bank providers, which are not held to the same broad federal oversight requirements as traditional banks.

  • Last week, the Federal Reserve signaled a consensus among Governors on both sides of the ideological spectrum on the dire need to protect the financial sector from the obvious risks posed by non-banks.
  • A new report from the U.S. House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis found that many fintech companies failed to stop “obvious and preventable fraud” in administering PPP loans, leading to the “needless loss of taxpayer dollars.”

To learn more about CBA’s advocacy efforts urging policymakers to modernize the regulatory rules of the road and ensure all Americans receive the protections they deserve, click HERE.