Episode 12: CFPB Collection Rules & Regs 2025 with John McNamara

Debt Collection has changed considerably over the last half century. Just ask John McNamara- the former Assistant Director and long-time staffer at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (or CFBP for short), John began his career as a debt collector in 1983. Since then, he's moved from the American Credit Bureau to senior executive roles, co-founding Fidelis Recovery Solutions, and serving as Chief Marketing Officer for Live Vox, before spending 11 years at the CFPB. As John likes to tell it, Debt Collection is a marketing problem based on raising engagement and re-establishing hope for debtors - but if we can understand the shape of the industry, then what's making the job so difficult in 2025?This week on the podcast, John's sitting down with Steve to share his perspective on serving under three different CFPB directors as the 'voice of industry reality', his efforts on Regulation F (including the language around using text and email for debt communication and the problem with the FOTI rule), where the CFPB is headed due to the ongoing volatile political landscape surrounding the Bureau in the age of President Trump's second term in office, and John's new role as Chief Growth Officer for Avtal with their success-based pricing and principled approach to consumer engagement. Find out more about John McNamara at https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-mcnamara-75a2982/Visit http://www.elsos.com for more.