There’s no way to know exactly what the impact of President-elect Donald J. Trump’s term will have on the payments industry, but industry folks are already speculating.
Kevin Woodward of Digital Payments said industry analysts are saying that a Trump presidency could affect the future of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and its director, Richard Cordray, a hike in interest rates, a reduction in corporate tax rates and the altering of the Dodd-Frank Act.
While some are expecting big changes, many are doubtful that Trump will take any immediate action on the above-mentioned subjects.
“It is also unlikely at this point that tumultuous change by a Republican administration in CFPB, Dodd-Frank, Durbin, etc. will be possible, as the dysfunctionality in Washington would appear to be accentuated, not relieved, at this point,” consultant Steve Mott of BetterBuyDesign told Woodward.
When Trump clinched the presidency, it clearly got the attention of the fintech industry. Some fear a decrease in investment in the industry, less regulation, restricted access to labor, and the equivalent of constructing a digital wall around the country.
Maybe the biggest issue on the table is the issue of net neutrality — which bans internet service providers from setting up tiered lanes that favor access based on pricing.
The fear is that in general, while Democrats have favored net neutrality, Republicans are opposed to it and Trump has already made statements expressing his opposition to it.
Earlier this year, GOP lawmakers introduced a bill that would end net neutrality, and many think Trump will surely sign it into law.
“To censor the internet or place restrictions of its current existence disregards nearly 30 years of economic prosperity and threatens the future of nearly every industry,” Jordan Lampe, director of communications for Dwolla told American Banker.