The data also showed that more purchase loans were made to low- and moderate-income borrowers last year, but fewer refinances.

The departures of Bryan Schneider and Peggy Twohig come as the Biden administration's nominee to run the consumer bureau awaits Senate confirmation.

DMB Financial, a debt-settlement firm near Boston that operates in 24 states, agreed to pay $5.4 million in restitution to consumers for allegedly charging upfront fees before providing any service, the CFPB said.

Financial institutions said they needed more time to weigh in on issues such as how they use artificial intelligence for fraud prevention and underwriting.

Fannie and Freddie's regulator says the companies must comply with the new Qualified Mortgage standard by the summer, while the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has extended the deadline to 2022. The conflicting timetables have stoked uncertainty in the market.

Cordray, named this week to lead the Education Department's office of federal student aid, cracked down on banks, student loan servicers and for-profit colleges when he was director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Some say Equifax, Experian and TransUnion are too slow to investigate grievances, prompting more complaints to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. But the big three say other forces are at work.

Deals, trends and research in structured finance and asset-backed securities for the week of April 23-29

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has moved ahead with an earlier proposal to postpone the full adoption of the qualified-mortgage ability-to-repay rule, citing a need to maximize borrowers' credit access.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau disputes a district court ruling that misconduct claims against the company were already covered by a previous settlement.