By Jonathan Stempel
NEW YORK (Reuters) -MoneyGram agreed to pay a $250,000 fine to settle a New York state lawsuit over its remittance transfers, two months after the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau withdrew from the civil case.
The accord announced on Monday by New York Attorney General Letitia James resolves claims that MoneyGram repeatedly violated a 2013 federal rule designed to make it easier for people to send money to friends and family outside the country.
Remittance transfers let people in the United States send money electronically to people in other countries.
In the April 2022 lawsuit, James said MoneyGram repeatedly let recipients wait too long for their money, kept senders in the dark about when transfers would be made, and failed to properly address complaints.
MoneyGram did not admit or deny wrongdoing in agreeing to the settlement, which was filed in federal court in Manhattan.
The settlement also requires clear disclosures about how MoneyGram investigates errors and that customers are not liable.
Dallas-based MoneyGram was purchased in 2023 by private equity firm Madison Dearborn Partners.
“We are pleased to bring full closure to this legacy matter, which dates back years and involved no harm to consumers,” MoneyGram general counsel Cory Feinberg said in a statement.
In announcing its April 7 withdrawal from the case, the CFPB said its new leadership “provided the direction” and that its decision was supported by “principles of justice and fairness.”
The CFPB since January has abandoned much of its enforcement activity as the Trump administration tries to gut the agency, including by firing most employees.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Leslie Adler)
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