FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 5, 2025
CONTACT:
Carter Dougherty
carter@ourfinancialsecurity.org
Senate Republicans Vote to Enrich Musk by Killing Payment App Protections
Washington, D.C. — Senate Republicans voted to give Elon Musk and Big Tech the ability to operate payment apps without any meaningful oversight or accountability, a step that will leave millions vulnerable to financial predators and scammers.
The Senate passed S.J. 28 on a 51-47 vote, to repeal the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) finalized payment app oversight rule, commonly called the “larger participants rule.” Senate Democrats were joined by a single Republican, Sen. Josh Hawley in opposing the effort to overturn the rule that simply requires that the digital payment apps and wallets get the same oversight that banks have to make sure that they comply with consumer financial protection laws and avoid risky practices. The rule covers the large Big Tech payment apps such as Venmo, Paypal, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and would apply to Elon Musk’s newly launched X-Money app on his social media platform X.
“Gutting this rule will leave millions of people who use these payment apps without basic protections from fraud and scams, arbitrary account deactivation and freezes, and surveillance and data harvesting,” said Mark Hays, associate director for cryptocurrency and financial technology at Americans for Financial Reform. “Without this rule, users of these payment apps would be more exposed to rampant fraudulent charges that are difficult to get the platforms to address, a problem that is especially acute for overseas servicemembers who are more reliant on payment apps.”
This vote is the latest front of Elon Musk’s war against the CFPB, a key regulator that protects people and families from predatory, abusive, and discriminatory practices of Wall Street, Big Tech, and banks. The rule would require digital payment apps like Musk’s X-Money to follow basic consumer protection requirements, including keeping people safe from scams and fraud, protecting people’s data and not allowing it to be exploited for illicit uses. If this rule is repealed, Musk — and other Big Tech titans — stand to benefit from a regulatory blindspot that would leave millions of digital payment app users without protections or guardrails.
“The Republican Senate just handed Elon Musk and Big Tech a huge payday and a get out of jail free card for any future fraudulent transactions, sensitive data harvesting, and mistreatment on their platforms,” said Patrick Woodall, AFR’s managing director for policy. “Today, the Republican Senate stood firmly on the side of Big Tech and against the public that will have no protections from shoddy treatment and widespread fraud on these payment apps. The House must vote down this shameless effort to reward Elon Musk for his attacks on the CFPB.”
Resources
- 111 Consumer advocates oppose S.J.Res 28
- Factsheet: CFPB Payment App Oversight Rule
- The American Prospect: The CFPB Shutdown Is Entirely About Payment Apps
- The Washington Post: The CFPB took aim at Big Tech. Then Elon Musk moved to dismantle it.
###