The US regulator has withdrawn its supervision of Google's payments business

The US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has rescinded its directive to regulate Google's payments business, reversing a decision to regulate non-bank financial platforms under the Biden administration. Russell Watt, the CFPB's acting director appointed by Mr. Trump, believes that regulating Google's payments business is an "improper use of the authority and resources of the agency", according to the memo. In December 2023, the CFPB under former director Rohit Chopra said that Google's payments business was within its enforcement jurisdiction but still met regulatory conditions "required by law". However, Google shut down the payment service in June last year. Under Mr. Biden, Mr. Chopra's CFPB has made regulation of non-bank Financial Institutions Groups such as digital wallets and payment apps a priority, but has ended many of its policies and lawsuits against non-deposit financial companies as its focus shifts to licensed banking institutions.