Policymakers move to protect servicemembers
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Arkansas attorney general’s recent settlement with Andrew Gamber and the three companies he owned and operated – Voyager Financial Group LLC, BAIC Inc. and SoBell Corp. – highlights the challenges military servicemembers and veterans face when seeking credit or financial services.
Among the charges: that the three broker companies misrepresented the validity of the contracts the companies facilitated. For example, the companies offered contracts to purchase a potential customer’s future pension or disability payments in exchange for lump-sum payments with a debt that far exceeded the monthly pension or disability payouts. The CFPB complaint noted that the customers’ monthly checks were deposited in a bank controlled by the companies in question, and that such contracts are illegal.
As AFSA has noted, military service personnel, veterans and their families face enough challenges for their service to our country that they should not have to worry about dealing with illegal or questionable financial risks, but they also need access to the financial tools to meet their needs. This case further highlights the need for expanded use of financial literacy curriculums and programs, not only for military personnel, but for the broader society.
August 15th, 2019
