The American Fintech Council (AFC) has expressed its opposition to regulatory actions targeting Earned Wage Access (EWA) providers. Phil Goldfeder, the Chief Executive Officer of AFC, emphasized that EWA should not be considered a loan and thus should not be regulated as one.

"EWA is not a loan, and should not be regulated as such," Goldfeder stated. He described EWA as "a no-cost, non-recourse tool providing millions of Americans with safe, convenient access to wages they have already earned." According to Goldfeder, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) had reached a similar conclusion nearly four years ago. This understanding allowed responsible innovators to offer financial flexibility to consumers who might otherwise resort to predatory financial products like payday loans.

Goldfeder warned that reclassifying EWA could harm consumers who are underbanked or have little to no credit history. "It is these exact consumers...that will be most harmed by efforts to reclassify EWA," he said. The AFC strongly opposes any legal or regulatory measures that aim to classify EWA as a loan product, which could limit access for those who need it most.