The U.S. government is weighing whether to treat Apple, Google and PayPal-owned Venmo more like banks — and regularly inspect some of their operations — in a move meant to protect millions of Americans who now use their smartphones to pay at the register and send money to family and friends.
But the prospect of heightened federal oversight has sparked deep and wide-ranging unease throughout the tech industry, triggering a lobbying offensive that aims to limit the government’s power to monitor mobile wallets, accounts or other digital payment services.
The spats have occurred with little fanfare on Capitol Hill and at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which unveiled its proposal for new tech scrutiny in November. The agency seeks to subject the largest payment apps and services — from money-transferring tools like Cash App, for example, to the smartphone wallets offered by Apple and Google — to the same rigorous checkups as their brick-and-mortar predecessors.
In practice, the CFPB would gain the ability to conduct on-site reviews at these companies and examine their private documents and communications, a form of monitoring — known as supervision — meant to ensure the stewards of Americans’ money have sound financial practices. Major banks, such as Bank of America, Chase and Wells Fargo, are already subject to such federal inspections.
Read more in The Washington Post