Leaders of the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services and two subcommittees sent a letter to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell seeking information on the Federal Reserve’s efforts to mitigate rising payments fraud and to assess whether further action, including structural reform of the Fed or legislation, may be needed. The committee asked for a list of consumer outreach efforts by the Board of Governors and the twelve Federal Reserve Banks on payments fraud, the Fed’s plan to address scams including instant payments and email-based fraud, a briefing on the Fed’s organizational structure and whether it is hindering consumer protection work, a briefing summarizing comments received after the comment period for the June 16, 2025 interagency request for information on payments fraud (focused on check fraud), and a description of external collaboration with other federal agencies and industry stakeholders. The letter cited reported increases in check fraud and broader fraud losses, including survey and industry estimates of the scale of attempted fraud and losses.
U.S. Financial Services Committee 2025-09-18
U.S. House Committee on Financial Services presses Federal Reserve for information on payments fraud mitigation and consumer outreach
The U.S. House Committee on Financial Services and two subcommittees have requested information from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on efforts to combat rising payments fraud. The inquiry seeks details on consumer outreach, plans to address scams, the Fed's organizational structure, and external collaborations. The letter highlights concerns over increasing check fraud and broader fraud losses.