CFPB TODAY ANNOUNCES $140 MILLION CONSUMER REFUND AS RESULT OF CAPITAL ONE PROBE

Somerville, MA – As the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) marks the one-year anniversary of opening its doors, consumer advocate and U.S. Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren praised the agency's work to protect people from the financial tricks and traps associated with credit card use.

Just today, the CFPB announced it has reached a settlement with Capital One to refund consumers $140 million and pay a $25 million penalty as the result of the agency's probe into deceptive and misleading marketing practices on credit cards. This is the CFPB's first public enforcement action.

"I'm proud that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has stood up for middle class families by holding a major credit card company, Capitol One, accountable for deceptive practices," said Warren. "The new consumer agency is only one-year old, but it is fearless. It will hold accountable the largest financial institutions and try to make sure that even the biggest banks follow the rules."

"The CFPB has been pushing to reduce the fine print in credit card agreements and assisting with consumer complaints, and today's action shows how important it is that consumers have someone on their side. It's critical that we keep moving forward and protect the gains we've made, to protect people from financial tricks and traps and help create a level playing field."

The CFPB, which reaches the one-year anniversary of opening its doors on July 21st, has taken a number of steps to help level the playing field for middle class families on credit cards, including:

• Developing a prototype credit card contract that is much shorter and clearer than current credit card agreements. The Pentagon Federal Credit Union, which serves more than 350,000 credit customers, is currently testing this new contract.

• Helping thousands of people resolve their complaints about credit cards, mortgages, and student loans with its fully accessible Consumer Response Center.

Warren is widely credited with the idea for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and she served as Assistant to the President and Special Advisor to the Secretary of the Treasury in 2010 and 2011, with the authority to set up the consumer agency. Warren also served as Chair of the bipartisan Congressional Oversight Panel. For her clear and fearless oversight efforts on behalf of the American people, Time Magazine named her one of the "New Sheriffs of Wall Street," and the Boston Globe named her Bostonian of the Year in 2009.

Last night, Warren marked the one-year anniversary of the CFPB opening its doors in remarks at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.