In furtherance of the Biden Administration’s “junk fee” agenda, on January 17, 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued its proposed rule to amend Regulations E and Z to regulate overdraft services provided by “very large financial institutions” (an insured depository institution or an insured credit union that has total assets of more than $10 Billion and any affiliate thereof, as determined under 12 U.S.C. 5515(a)). The proposed rule permits a very large financial institution to offer a courtesy overdraft service as long as it only charges a “breakeven” amount for the service, either (i) its direct costs to provide the service or (ii) a benchmark fee (in an amount to be determined, either $3, $6, $7, or $14). (Such an overdraft service is referred to as “breakeven overdraft credit.”)
