The US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has formally withdrawn its supervisory designation over Google Payment Corp., reversing a move initiated in December 2024 that had marked a significant expansion of regulatory scrutiny into Big Tech’s role in the payments sector.
The original designation, issued under the CFPB’s authority to supervise “larger participants” in nonbank financial markets, cited Google’s peer-to-peer (P2P) payment services as posing potential risks to consumers.
The Bureau referenced a pattern of complaints related to unauthorised transactions and limited recourse for users, particularly through Google Pay’s US offering, which was discontinued in mid-2024.
In its December order, the CFPB had argued that Google Payment Corp. met the criteria for supervision under a 2022 rule allowing the Bureau to examine nonbank companies offering digital wallets and funds transfer services, a measure implemented during the Biden administration. That rule had extended CFPB oversight to certain fintech and technology firms previously outside the Bureau’s regular examination programme.
Google responded by filing a legal challenge in February 2025, disputing the designation and arguing that the decision was based on a narrow set of unverified complaints about a discontinued product. The company maintained that its payments business, which operates under different conditions outside the US, had been inaccurately characterised.
Google payments supervision dropped
On 7 May 2025, Acting CFPB Director Russell Vought—appointed by President Donald Trump following the change in administration—rescinded the order, citing a lack of ongoing consumer risk and calling the supervision “an unwarranted use of Bureau resources.”
The reversal aligns with broader deregulatory priorities emerging under the Trump administration, which has sought to roll back several Biden-era initiatives targeting fintech and Big Tech firms. These include delays to previously proposed rules on buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) services and the pausing of further supervision designations under the 2022 larger participants rule. While the rule itself remains on the books, its future application appears uncertain.
Google has since dropped its lawsuit, with a company spokesperson stating that the outcome reflects “a pragmatic and proportionate resolution” given the business’s current operations and product availability.
For payments professionals, the episode reflects the volatility of regulatory oversight in the US digital finance space—particularly for firms operating at the intersection of technology and financial services. While the CFPB retains authority to supervise nonbanks under existing legislation, the scope and frequency of its interventions will likely be shaped by shifting political priorities in the months ahead.
