LA: AFC Letter in Support of HB 1230

The Honorable Daryl Andrew Deshotel
Chair
Louisiana House Commerce Committee
State Capitol,
900 North Third Street
Baton Rouge, LA 70804

The Honorable Polly Thomas
Vice Chair
Louisiana House Commerce Committee
State Capitol
900 North Third Street
Baton Rouge, LA 70804

Re: Support for House Bill 1230

Dear Chair Deshotel, Vice-Chair Thomas, and members of the House Commerce Committee:  

On behalf of the American Fintech Council (AFC),  I am writing to express our strong support for House Bill 1230 (HB 1230), which would streamline and modernize the regulation of money transmission businesses in Louisiana through the adoption of the Conference of State Bank Supervisors’ Money Transmission Modernization Act (MTMA). HB 1230 was referred to your committee on April 1, 2026.

AFC is a standards-based organization and the largest and most diverse trade association representing financial technology companies and innovative banks. On behalf of over 150 member companies and partners, AFC promotes a transparent, inclusive, and customer-centric financial system by supporting responsible innovation in financial services and encouraging sound public policy. AFC members foster competition in consumer finance and pioneer products and services that expand access, improve efficiency, and better serve underserved consumers and communities across the United States.

AFC has consistently advocated for a unified approach to regulation that encourages responsible innovation in financial services. The MTMA bill before your committee reflects the policy principles that AFC seeks to implement through its advocacy. Specifically, the MTMA seeks to modernize and harmonize the payments regulatory framework.  In turn, this will allow payments services companies operating across the country an improved regulatory framework that lowers costs and allows these companies to improve their offerings for Louisianians. Ultimately, both Louisiana consumers and businesses who rely on payments companies every day will benefit from the passage of this bill.

Currently, state legislatures around the country have been diligently working to pass and implement the Conference of State Bank Supervisors’ model MTMA, AFC has supported this model legislation due to its pragmatic approach towards modernizing the complex payments regulatory ecosystem. Thus far, over 25 states have enacted the MTMA.  We believe it is crucial for Louisiana to join the states that have already enacted a version of the MTMA in order to ensure that the regulatory environment in Louisiana fits the modern payments ecosystem.

AFC remains committed to partnering with the Louisiana Legislature in crafting any new financial policies that reflect the realities of the modern payments ecosystem and ensure that the Louisiana economy and Louisiana consumers are best served. We applaud Chair Deshotel for introducing HB 1230 to expand access to credit for Louisiana consumers and hope you will report the bill favorably out of committee. Please do not hesitate to reach out if we can serve as a resource or provide further perspective on the role of fintech in enhancing America’s financial health.  

Sincerely,

Ashley Urisman
Director of State Government Affairs
American Fintech Council

[1] American Fintech Council’s (AFC) membership spans banks, non-bank lenders, payments providers, EWA providers, loan servicers, credit bureaus, and personal financial management companies.
[2] See, Conference of State Bank Supervisors, “CSBS Money Transmission Modernization Act (MTMA)”, Apr. 30, 2025, available at https://www.csbs.org/csbs-money-transmission-modernization-act-mtma.
[3] Ibid.

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