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Google sued the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Friday, challenging the agency’s decision to place Google’s payment division under federal supervision.
In a copy of the lawsuit provided by Google, the company said the CFPB’s supervision would be a “burdensome form of regulation” imposed based on a “small number of unsubstantiated user complaints.” The CFPB’s decision related to a Google peer-to-peer payment product no longer offered in the US.
The lawsuit, filed in the US district court in Washington DC, comes after the CFPB published an order announcing supervisory authority of Google Payment Corp. The agency alleged that Google’s handling of its payment products may pose a risk to consumers. The CFPB cited customer complaints, including that Google failed to properly investigate instances where money was transferred in error.
In a statement, Google spokesperson José Castañeda said Google’s payment products never posed a risk to users.
“This is a clear case of government overreach involving Google Pay peer-to-peer payments, which never raised risks and is no longer provided in the U.S., and we are challenging it in court,” he said.
In the company’s lawsuit, Google argued that the CFPB committed a legal error by setting an “exceedingly low bar” for what it counts as sufficient risks to consumers.
“As a matter of common sense, a product that no longer exists is incapable of posing such risks,” the lawsuit said.
This is a developing story and will be updated.