Comments due Bureau request for information on small business financing needs

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has posted a Bureau Blog article and a press release announcing an inquiry into ways to gather and use new and existing information to identify the financing needs of small businesses, especially those owned by women and minorities. The Bureau will publish a Request for Information asking for public feedback to help the Bureau better understand how to obtain more consistent and complete information on those credit needs.

UPDATE: The CFPB's Request for Information was published at 82 FR 22318 in the Federal Register on May 15, 2017, with a comment period ending on July 14, 2017.

UPDATE: On June 8, 2017, Director Cordray, in a presentation to a meeting of the Bureau's Consumer Advisory Board, announced that the Bureau has agreed to a 60-day extension of the comment period, to September 14, 2017. That extension was formalized in a Federal Register notice on July 12, 2017.

The CFPB also released a white paper reviewing the evidence available to the Bureau concerning the small business lending landscape.