Governmental Regulation" for a further discussion of the regulatory authority of the CFPB.
The adoption of new laws or regulations or adverse changes in, or the interpretation or enforcement of, existing laws or regulations affecting the Company’s products and services could adversely affect its financial condition and operating results.
Governments, including agencies at the national, state and local levels, may seek to enforce or impose new laws, regulatory restrictions, licensing requirements or taxes that affect the Company’s products or services it offers, the terms on which it may offer such products and services, and the disclosure, compliance and reporting obligations it must fulfill in connection with its business. They may also interpret or enforce existing requirements in new ways that could restrict the Company’s ability to continue its current methods of operation or to expand operations, could impose significant additional compliance costs, and could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial condition and results of operations. In some cases, these measures could even directly prohibit some or all of the Company’s current business activities in certain jurisdictions or render them unprofitable and/or impractical to continue.
Media reports, statements made by regulators and elected officials and the general public perception that pawnshops, LTO and retail finance products for credit-constrained consumers are predatory or abusive could materially adversely affect the Company’s businesses. In recent years, consumer advocacy groups and some media reports, in the U.S., Latin America and the U.K., have advocated governmental action to prohibit or place severe restrictions on the Company’s products and services.