Banking and Finance Law Daily Wrap Up, WORTH NOTING—Other regulatory, legislative, litigation, and industry developments, (Jun 18, 2026)

By WK Editorial Staff

A weekly roundup of other items of interest to the banking and finance law community.

DEBT COLLECTION—Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell has secured a preliminary injunction blocking former Massachusetts-based debt buying company Assessment Resolution, LLC “phantom” debt collector East Coast Financial and the companies’ respective owners and operators, Paul and Richard Santorsola, from engaging in a debt collection scam to extract money from Massachusetts consumers. In its order, the court requires the defendants to immediately halt all debt collection activities and prohibits them from destroying or tampering with any evidence and from dissipating their assets. The AG alleges that East Coast Financial operated as an alleged 'phantom' debt collector by trying to collect debts over the telephone with profane language, false threats, and misrepresentations. According to the AG’s office, the Santorsola brothers and East Coast Financial associates used false names and fake affiliations with a constable’s office or law office to threaten arrest or property seizure. AG Campbell also says the defendants demanded payment for old court judgments and did not provide consumer-requested documents showing they owned the debts. It alleges consumers lost more than $26,000 as a result. The preliminary injunction will be in effect while the Attorney General continues to seek comprehensive injunctive relief and restitution for victims of the alleged scheme. Campbell said, “Phantom debt collectors who prey upon the fears and financial vulnerabilities of Massachusetts residents have no place within our Commonwealth, and my office will not tolerate this kind of harassment and calculated deception.”

FINANCIAL STABILITY—The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has reported that the Federal Reserve Board’s Main Street Lending Program still had 251 loans outstanding after they should have closed by Jan. 5, 2026. As of January 2026, three Main Street facilities held about $672 million in outstanding loans. The GAO said 70 percent of Main Street loans had been fully repaid, while balloon-payment problems left nearly $2 billion in authorized loan amounts at risk of non-repayment.

TRUTH IN LENDING—A bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) would amend the Truth in Lending Act to include buy now, pay later (BNPL) loans in the definition of credit card and BNPL issuers in the definition of credit issuer. The Buy Now Pay Later Consumer Protection Act of 2026 would direct the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to issue implementing rules within 180 days after enactment, tying those rules to the Bureau’s Regulation Z approach for digital user accounts used to access BNPL loans. The bill would require rules carrying out the TILA amendments within 180 days after enactment. Those rules would have to be in accordance with the CFPB interpretive rule titled “Truth in Lending (Regulation Z); Use of Digital User Accounts To Access Buy Now, Pay Later Loans,” published in the Federal Register on May 31, 2024. The bill also would require the rules to apply part 1026, subpart B, and Section 1026.60 of title 12 of the Code of Federal Regulations to BNPL issuers.

Companies: Assessment Resolution, LLC; East Coast Financial

IndustryNews: BankingOperations CFPB ConsumerCredit CreditDebitGiftCards CrimesOffenses DebtCollection EnforcementActions FederalReserveSystem FinancialStability Loans MassachusettsNews TruthInLending UDAAP