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Payday Lender Alerts Archive

Online Payday Lenders

California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation Advises Caution for Payday Loan Consumers. The Department has posted an updated Internet Payday Lending Alert for consumers who might consider using payday cash advances from online lenders. The alert is also available in Spanish. The Department warns potential borrowers to take extra caution when dealing with unlicensed Internet payday lenders who fail to obtain a license with the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation, evading state laws and regulations designed to protect consumers. The Alert provides advice and contact information to report unlicensed lenders.

What can happen if I use an unlicensed Internet payday lender?

  • Lenders may collect from your bank account directly without your permission, even if you are unable to repay the loan.
  • You can be charged an interest rate far higher than California law allows.
  • Unlicensed Internet payday lenders may sell or pirate personal financial information even before a loan is agreed to or the borrower opts to not complete the transaction.
  • Your lender may be operating out-of-state or overseas, which means if they violate the law it is hard to track them down, prosecute, and recover your lost funds.

The Department of Financial Protection and Innovation encourages consumers to check the licensing status of companies prior to transacting business by calling the Department’s toll-free Consumer Services Office at 1-866-275-2677.


8/23/13 – NetPDL; NetPDL.com**  The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) has received complaints against NetPDL and NetPDL.com. It appears that NetPDL with a website address of NetPDL.com may be illegally offering online payday loans to California consumers. This company has been associated with the following website and telephone numbers: NetPDL.com; 1-888-203-0106.

California consumers are advised that NetPDL and NetPDL.com is not licensed by the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation to engage in offering or originating consumer loans or payday loans.  The Department of Financial Protection and Innovation encourages consumers to verify the licensing status of companies prior to transacting business.

California consumers should contact the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation to check on the licensing of companies, investments or other financial services they are considering by visiting the financial services licensee listing or calling the Department’s toll-free Consumer Services Office at 1-866-275-2677.

08/23/13 – The Department of Financial Protection and Innovation has issued a consumer bulletin on unlicensed online lending.  The Department warns potential borrowers to take extra caution when dealing with unlicensed Internet payday lenders who fail to obtain a license with the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation, evading state laws and regulations designed to protect consumers. The Alert provides advice and contact information to report unlicensed lenders.

08/13/13 – EZ CASH, ezpaydaycash.net, Stephen Rogers, Roger Stephens and other individuals** The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) has been notified that a company calling themselves EZ Cash, with the website ezpaydaycash.net, purports to hold a California license “CTICC License # CACL/063/08/09” and to be “an internet money lender licensed and operating pursuant to CACL 63-8-9 et. Seq.”  EZ Cash is not licensed with the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation.
The Department of Financial Protection and Innovation encourages consumers to check the licensing status of companies prior to transacting business.

California consumers should contact the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation to check on the licensing of companies, investments or other financial services they are considering by visiting the financial services licensee listing or calling the Department’s toll-free Consumer Services Office at 1-866-275-2677.

08/13/13 – **INTERNET ALERT — Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana d/b/a Mobiloans, NATIVE AMERICAN TRIBE ONLINE PAYDAY LENDERS** The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) has received complaints against Mobiloans.  It appears that this entity is offering payday loan services within the State of California.  The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation normally licenses and regulates  “Payday Lenders” doing business in California under the California Deferred Deposit Transaction Law.  But due to the fact that Mobiloans claims to be wholly owned by the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana, the entity asserts that it is not subject to regulation by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation and that only the United States Government has jurisdiction over federally recognized Indian Tribes and their business activities.  Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana is not licensed to conduct business in the state of California.  Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana d/b/a Mobiloans operates a website at www.mobiloans.com and lists its phone number as (877) 836-1519. The address that has been associated with this entity is: Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana d/b/a Mobiloans, 151 Melacon Rd, Marksville, LA 71351.
We recommend that complaints against Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana d/b/a Mobiloans be directed to: The Federal Trade Commission (https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/#/), and the US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB – http://www.consumerfinance.gov/complaint/)

08/06/13 – Cash Express Loan** – The Department of Financial Protection and Innovation issues a warning notice regarding Cash Express Loan.  An entity calling itself “Cash Express Loan” may be offering consumer loans and/or deferred deposit transactions (also known as “payday loans”) in California without any license issued by the Commissioner of the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation in violation of the California Finance Lender Law and/or the California Deferred Deposit Transaction Law.  Cash Express Loan purports to provide the following telephone number and email address: +1 872-588-4199 and support@cashexpressprocess.com, but no website or physical address.

In or about May 2013, this entity contacted at least one California consumer offering a $2,500 loan conditioned upon payment of an upfront $280 fee, which was to be paid by purchasing a Vanilla Reload Network card, a type of stored-value card.  After “loading” the funds onto the card, the California consumer was instructed to give the pin number of the card to the entity, which then withdrew $280 from the card.  However, after paying the $280 upfront fee, the California consumer never received any loan funds, and repeated calls and emails to the entity have gone unanswered.

California consumers are advised that this entity is not licensed by the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation to engage in offering or originating consumer loans or payday loans.  All persons who have communicated with the above-mentioned entity are asked to contact the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation, Los Angeles, California at (213) 576-7594.

08/06/13 – The Department of Financial Protection and Innovation issues a warning notice regarding Cash Express Loan.

07/18/13 – fds-inc.net** – The Department of Financial Protection and Innovation has been notified that fds-inc.net is offering escrow services over the Internet and is falsely advertising that it is Funds Disbursement Services, Inc., license number 963-2324, a valid escrow company regulated by the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation. Fds-inc.net is not a website of Funds Disbursement Services, Inc. and is not licensed to conduct escrows by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation.