CUNA supports the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection’s participation in the Global Financial Innovation Network (GFIN), but strongly encourages the bureau encourage the network to ensure a level playing field. CUNA submitted comments to the bureau Sunday in response to a document outlining the GFIN collaborative effort.

The GFIN seeks to provide a more efficient way for innovative firms to interact with regulators, helping them navigate between countries. is The bureau intends to participate in the GFIN as a collaborator with a number of foreign regulatory bodies.

“CUNA strongly recommends the Bureau encourage the Network to keep top of mind the need for fairness, proportionality, and a level-playing field in the market. The adoption of aggressive or far-reaching policies intent on bolstering innovation could have a disruptive effect on markets,” CUNA’s letter reads. “Instead, the GFIN Member Agencies should collectively seek to hold innovators – including FinTech companies - that provide substantially similar services as depository institutions to the substantially similar regulatory standards as those institutions.”

CUNA also notes that consumers can benefit from additional innovation by financial institutions, which is why CUNA supports the bureau’s plans to encourage innovation, “so long as credit unions have equal access to those opportunities and any officially-sanctioned programs are limited in number and narrow in scope.”

The World Council of Credit Unions also submitted a comment letter, containing several detailed recommendations. CUNA is a member of the World Council and fully supports the recommendations expressed in its letter.