WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Federation of America (CFA) released a new report, ­The United States of Amnesia: Forgotten Lessons from the 2008 Financial Crisis, highlighting how the current deregulation of Buy Now Pay Later, Payment Apps, and Crypto currencies mirror the light-touch regulatory regime of non-bank mortgage lenders in the years leading up to the 2008 financial crisis.

“The deliberate dismantling of regulatory safeguards in fintech, payments, and stablecoins shows a collective refusal to remember what led to the last economic collapse,” the report states. “Rather than learning from mistakes made before the financial crisis, Congress and regulators are discovering new ways to repeat them.”

The new report, published as the latest issue in CFA’s Patterns of Peril series, continues to explore the recurring signs of economic crisis. It warns that now, just as then, it will be working Americans who pay the price when regulators fail to act, and Congress bows to financial interests.

“Financial stability is not preserved by deregulating the latest player in the game; it is maintained when all participants, regardless of their structures or brand names, are subject to the same prudent rules,” said Adam Rust, CFA’s Director of Financial Services and author of the report. “If policymakers fail to recall this truth, they are destined to relearn it the hard way.”