The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and seven state attorneys general sued Strategic Financial Solutions (SFS) and its web of shell companies for running an illegal debt-relief enterprise, according to a CFPB press release on Friday. The CFPB and state attorneys general also sued the chief architects of the illegal enterprise, Ryan Sasson and Jason Blust. The CFPB and attorneys general allege the enterprise has collected hundreds of millions of dollars in exorbitant, illegal fees from vulnerable consumers. The CFPB and attorneys general filed the suit under seal on January 10, 2024. They are requesting the court to order a stop to the enterprise’s illegal actions, order redress for consumers, and impose a civil money penalty. The seven states joining with the CFPB are Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, and Wisconsin. Under the Consumer Financial Protection Act, the CFPB has the authority to take action against nonbank financial institutions, including debt-relief companies, for violating consumer financial protections laws and rules, including the Telemarketing Sales Rule. The lawsuit seeks to stop SFS’s alleged unlawful conduct, require SFS to make harmed consumers whole, and require SFS to pay a civil money penalty, which would be deposited in the CFPB’s victims relief fund.
