The US consumer watchdog has closed a four-year investigation into Credova, a buy now, pay later provider for firearms and outdoor goods, invoking the White House’s new “fair banking” order.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has ended its investigation into Credova Financial, telling parent company PSQ Holdings that the case “is closed” and lifting related document-retention obligations, according to a August 19 letter.
The Bureau’s chief legal officer wrote that the probe, opened in February 2021, was biased against a lawful line of business and cited President Trump’s August 7 executive order on “politicised or unlawful debanking” as part of the rationale.
Credova specialises in point-of-sale credit and lease-to-own options for merchants in the shooting sports segment.
The CFPB letter states that more than 90% of Credova’s business was in that category by late 2024, and alleges that prior settlement demands would have effectively shut down parts of its firearms activity. The letter also references the Supreme Court’s NRA v. Vullo decision and claims undue influence from the New York Attorney General, assertions that have not been tested in court.
PSQ said it was “grateful” for the closure in a August 19 statement, while the Financial Times reported the move as part of a broader shift in the CFPB’s posture under the new administration.
PublicSquare acquired Credova in March 2024 in an all-equity deal.
Why the BNPL angle matters
The decision lands amid heightened scrutiny of the BNPL model. In May 2024 the CFPB issued an interpretive rule clarifying that BNPL lenders using digital user accounts are treated as “card issuers” under Regulation Z, bringing obligations on periodic statements and billing dispute rights that align BNPL with credit card standards.
That framework still applies. The Credova letter signals an enforcement pivot on alleged viewpoint bias, not a retreat from BNPL consumer-protection rules.
For providers serving higher-risk retail categories, the closure underscores two parallel expectations. First, access to payment and credit services should not turn on the politics of a lawful merchant vertical. Second, where BNPL is offered, lenders must continue to evidence compliance with Reg Z-style disclosures, dispute resolution and refunds.
Sector impact and open questions
- Merchant onboarding: Processors and sponsor banks will likely tighten documentation to show that any adverse action is grounded in measurable credit, fraud or compliance risk rather than reputation concerns. The executive order directs agencies to remove “reputation risk” from guidance, and sets 60, 120 and 180-day implementation milestones.
- BNPL compliance load: The interpretive rule continues to shape product design and servicing for instalment plans, regardless of merchant category.
- Evidence base: The broader “debanking” narrative remains contested. Reuters analysis of CFPB complaint data found 35 of 8,361 account-closure complaints since 2012 explicitly cited political or religious bias. Supporters argue under-reporting is likely, while critics say the issue is not systemic.
What’s next: Watch for regulator manual updates tied to the executive order, and for any further CFPB actions that cite the new “fair banking” policy. For BNPL providers, no change to the consumer-protection rule set is signalled by this letter.
The development is best read as a shift in how the Bureau characterises legacy cases involving lawful but controversial retail categories, not as a change to BNPL’s compliance baseline.
