On September 30, 2018, California enacted SB 1235, codified at California Financial Codes sections 22800–22805. SB 1235 requires that an offer of commercial financing for $500,000 or less be accompanied by disclosures of: (1)...more
For lenders in California, the Ides of March of March is a date worth calendaring....more
In the mid 1990s, I had the privilege of serving as Commissioner of Corporations for the State of California. At that time, the DOC was known as a tough securities regulator. However, the times they were a changin'. In...more
Last month, Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Khalil “KC” Mohseni, as Commissioner of the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation. Commissioner Mohseni is not an entirely new to the DFPI. He served as...more
As discussed in yesterday's post, California's anti-price gouging statute, Penal Code Section 396, is triggered upon the proclamation of a state of emergency by either the President of the United States or the Governor. ...more
California legislators are introducing the first bills in the current biennium. One of these bills, AB 83 (Pacheco), would add an entirely new division to the California Financial Code. This new division would consist of a...more
If you ask for a definition of "franchise" in California law, there are at least three answers. Two are statutory and one is judicial. Corporations Code Section 31005 defines "franchise" for purposes of California's...more
The California Department of Financial Protection & Innovation has created an online "Crypto Scam Tracker" that allows the public to by search company name, scam type, or keywords. Scams reported on the Tracker are based...more
11/20/2024
/ Banking Sector ,
California ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptoassets ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry
The Commissioner of Financial Protection & Innovation is appointed by the Governor and is subject to confirmation by the Senate. Cal. Fin. Code § 322. The Governor, however, is not free to appoint just anyone. To be...more
When an erstwhile shareholder of First Republic Bank sued the California Department of Financial Protection & Innovation for failing to safeguard the "financial soundness and structural integrity" of the bank, the DFPI "took...more
The California Consumer Financial Protection Law (CCFPL) authorizes the Department of Financial Protection & Innovation (DFPI) “regarding registration requirements applicable to a covered person engaged in the business of...more
Exactly one year ago today, I wrote that Governor Newsom had signed a bill, AB 39, that will prohibit a person from engaging in digital financial asset business activity without a license from Department of Financial...more
Since I served as Commissioner of Corporations in the 1990s, the Department of Corporations has consolidated with the Department of Financial Institutions and changed its name twice. It is now known by the unwieldy name of...more
It is a peculiar hubris of California's legislators that they often presume to extend the application of the state's laws beyond its legal borders. Corporations Code Section 2115, for example, presumes to apply multiple...more
California generally requires that persons engaged in the business of making loans be licensed. If not licensed under some other statute (such as the banking, credit union or residential mortgage lending laws), a lender will...more
Recently, I wrote about the California Office of Administrative Law's rejection of regulations proposed by the Department of Financial Protection & Innovation. These proposed regulations were intended to "implement,...more
There is certainly no lack of persons actively violating the seventh or eighth commandment (depending upon who is counting). Last week, the California Department of Financial Protection & Innovation announced that it has...more
Last year, the California legislature enacted a bill, SB 54 (Skinner), that requires a "a venture capital" company to report annually to the Civil Rights Department on its funding determinations related to companies primarily...more
Article 14, Section 12 of the California Constitution requires the Governor to submit a budget to the Legislature by January 10 of each year. The Constitution further required that the budget be accompanied by a budget bill,...more
In March 2023, the California Department of Financial Protection & Innovation proposed to adopt numerous regulations to "implement, interpret, and make specific registration requirements for covered persons under the...more
In this post from 14 years ago, I speculated as to whether California Financial Code Section 1327 was constitutional. Two years later, the California Court of Appeal declared the statute unconstitutional. Summit Bank v....more
Last week the California Department of Financial Protection & Innovation issued a report of its activities under the California Consumer Financial Protection Law. The California legislature enacted the CCFPL in 2020 for the...more
California Corporations Code Section 25118(b) provides an exemption from the state's usury limitations for loans. The exemption is subject to several conditions. One condition is the existence of either a preexisting...more
4/15/2024
/ Borrowers ,
California ,
Cartels ,
Corporations Code ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Financing ,
Lenders ,
Loans ,
Money Laundering ,
Securities ,
Usury
Last week, Senator Steven M. Glazer introduced a bill, SB 1482, that would require licensing of "commercial financing providers" and "commercial financing brokers" with the Department of Financial Protection & Innovation...more
Each year, licensees under the California Financing Law (Cal. Fin. Code § 22000 et seq.) must file an annual report with the Department of Financial Protection & Innovation. The report is due on the Ides of March (the Ides...more