Residential Mortgage Loan Report under the Holden Act due by Mar. 31

Licensees are reminded the state Residential Mortgage Loan Report is due by Mar. 31 for all residential mortgage lenders who do not report to a federal or state regulatory agency as provided by the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act of 1975. Licensees making residential mortgages should consult with their internal compliance officers regarding whether they are required to file the state report.

California Deferred Deposit Transaction Law (CDDTL) Annual Report and Survey Coming Soon

The DBO is preparing to provide payday loan licensees notifications for their annual report and the third Annual California Deferred Deposit Transaction Law (CDDTL) Survey. Every lender licensed as of Dec. 31, 2014 shall file the Annual Report and complete the CDDTL Survey even if they conducted no business in 2014. Both reports will be due on March 15, 2015. These reports are required by Financial Code Section 23026 and 23015. The purpose of the Annual Report and Survey is for the DBO to gather data on transaction activities of licensees to assess the fiscal health and compliance practices of California’s payday lender industry. Responses by the licensees to the Annual Report and Survey will be consolidated into Summary Reports and will be available sometime after June 2015.

2014 Annual Report Form for the California Finance Lenders Law

The 2014 CFL Annual Report Instructions and Forms will be available on the DBO’s website in Feb. 2015. The report no longer will be available in a paper format, only in a downloadable format from the DBO’s website. Completed reports must be uploaded back onto the website. While the format for submitting the report is changing, the data collected will remain the same. The deadline to file the report is Mar. 15.

Assembly Bill 2209-Money Transmitter Receipt Requirements - Effective January 1, 2015

On September 20, 2014, the Governor signed Assembly Bill 2209 (Chapter 499, Statutes of 2014). The bill, among other things, changed receipt requirements for money transmitters. These new requirements become effective January 1, 2015. http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201320140AB2209&search_keywords=

SB 1181, TAKING EFFECT JANUARY 1, 2015, CLARIFIES THE CALIFORNIA FINANCE LENDERS LAW VENTURE CAPITAL EXEMPTION.

On June 28, 2014, Governor Brown signed Senate Bill 1181 (Chapter 68, Statutes of 2014), which becomes effective on January 1, 2015. SB 1181 revises provisions of the California Finance Lenders Law that relate to venture capital companies, effective January 1, 2015. Specifically, the bill: (1) increases the term of commercial bridge loans from one year to three years; and (2) exempts from the California Finance Lenders law specified investments made by venture capital companies in operating companies. Current law is silent as to whether venture capital investments in operating firms represent loans or investments in securities. SB 1181 clarifies that the California Finance Lenders Law does not apply to venture capital investments in equity securities issued by venture capital-backed operating companies. The bill exempts from the California Finance Lenders Law a venture capital investment made by a venture capital company in an equity security, as defined, issued by an operating company. The bill states that the definition of "equity security" is the same as its meaning in Section 3(a)(11) of the federal Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The federal Securities Exchange Act of 1934 defines “equity security” as any stock or similar security; or any security future on any such security; or any security convertible into such a security, or carrying any warrant or right to subscribe to or purchase such a security; or any such warrant or right; or any other security which the U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission shall deem to be of similar nature and consider necessary or appropriate to treat as an equity security.

Washington Revives the Mortgage Cramdown

With foreclosures continuing to climb and midterm elections just a year away, Congress once again is preparing to tackle the mortgage crisis aggressively. High on many a wish list: a renewed push to allow so-called cramdown, which would let bankruptcy judges adjust the terms of home loans to give borrowers relief.

The banking industry hates cramdown from the idea of cramming deals down lenders' throats, but Democrats argue that earlier efforts to fix the housing mess have not done as well as hoped. Moody's Economy.com MCO estimates that 3.8 million homes will enter foreclosure this year, up 41% from 2008. No surprise, then, that lawmakers are getting an earful. "We have folks calling our office every day," says Senator Jeff Merkley D-Ore., who is pressing Treasury to streamline its program to restructure mortgages.

"TRYING TO LIGHT A FIRE"So Capitol Hill is poring over more ideas. One bill, introduced by Senator Jack Reed D-R.I. on Sept. 30 and co-sponsored by Merkley and two other senators, would force lenders to pause before they foreclose and to offer borrowers a break on their mortgage bill if they qualify for help under the Treasury program. Under the same proposed law, states could require mortgage servicers to enter mediation with borrowers before being allowed to foreclose. The bill also would give the states $6.4 billion to help homeowners stay put. "We're really trying to light a fire under the Administration," Merkley says.

Others in the Senate are considering the temporary suspension of home-loan payments or brief monthly mortgage subsidies for unemployed homeowners. House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank D-Mass. is drafting similar legislation.
http://businessweek.mobi/detail.jsp?key=79409&rc=to&p=2&pv=1