Free Republic

Many Americans were surprised to recently see a coalition of the country’s most radical politicians — Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Rep Maxine Waters, D-Calif., and Sen. Richard Blumentha l, D-Conn., to name a few — teaming up to introduce heavy-handed legislation against the peer-to-peer payment companies (like PayPal, Venmo, Zelle and CashApp) that have improved all our lives. Blumenthal even went so far as to dispatch a separate letter to the head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) demanding an investigation into Zelle... The Biden administration brass, especially CFPB Director Rohit Chopra, have fought aggressively to convince the American...

CHICAGO—It’s the hottest scam going, one that everyone would be well-advised to keep in mind as they wander the streets of Chicago: fake charity solicitors and “homeless” people commandeer phones and transfer large sums of money to themselves using the victims’ electronic banking apps. We’ve told you about the scam and some people who’ve allegedly been caught running it, usually in tourist areas like the Mag Mile and Millennium Park or nightlife districts like Wrigleyville and the Gold Coast. Just yesterday morning, two men asked a couple for a donation near Crown Fountain at Millennium Park. The victims reluctantly agreed...

The Federal Reserve Thursday officially launched its long-awaited instant payment service FedNow, which allows consumers and businesses to send and receive money in seconds. The system lets Americans pay for groceries instantly, businesses pay their suppliers, or people pay each other. It will be available 24 hours a day, every day of the year, with full access to funds immediately. FedNow isn’t offered directly to individuals and businesses, but it will serve as the basis of infrastructure for instant payments by linking banks. Transactions occur between bank accounts and enable funds to be transferred from a sender’s bank account to...

Many Bank of America customers posted on social media Wednesday that they were experiencing major problems with the digital payment app Zelle. Individuals took to Twitter to share messages received from Bank of America that claimed they had negative account balances. Others stated they were having difficulty getting through to the bank's customer service department. Twitter user Jeepeto Cuarenton shared an image indicating his account balance was $-2,060.44. WHAT THE HECK? @BofA_Help @BankofAmerica I want my money back ASAP! I don’t have money for gas! Stuck at home. Your customer service phone doesn’t work! WHATS WRONG? pic.twitter.com/MB0U0VcQHG — Jeepeto Cuarentón...

The law was included in the Democrats' $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act, which was passed with only Democratic votes through budget reconciliation to avoid the Senate filibuster -------------------------------------------------------------------- *resident Joe Biden and Democrats in Congress passed a new rule that requires payment companies and cash applications such as Venmo and PayPal to report $600 or more of payments to the Internal Revenue Services. The law was included in the Democrats' $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act, which was passed with only Democratic votes through budget reconciliation to avoid the Senate filibuster. The new rule took effect at the beginning...