FirstCash, a Delaware corporation headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, owns and operates more than 1,000 retail pawnshops across the United States. The CFPB sued the company on November 12, 2021, alleging that since October 3, 2016, FirstCash made pawn loans to active-duty servicemembers and certain dependents at annual percentage rates exceeding the Military Lending Act's 36% cap. The bureau also alleged that loan agreements with covered borrowers required arbitration in the event of a dispute and failed to include all mandatory loan disclosures — both prohibited under the MLA.
Under the stipulated final judgment entered by the court, FirstCash must set aside $5 million to provide full redress to harmed servicemembers and their family members in connection with thousands of unlawful pawn loans. The company must also pay a $4 million fine to the CFPB's victims relief fund, bringing the total to $9 million.
Going forward, the order requires FirstCash to comply with the MLA and either offer an MLA-compliant loan product to servicemembers and their families or comply with a regulatory safe harbor designed to screen for MLA-protected borrowers.
The CFPB also alleged that the FirstCash violations constituted violations of a 2013 bureau order against Cash America International, Inc., a predecessor entity. On July 22, 2025, the bureau terminated that earlier consent order after determining that Cash America had fulfilled its obligations under it, including paying a $5 million civil money penalty and providing redress to consumers. The bureau noted that the predecessor entity no longer exists and that the products addressed in the 2013 order are unconnected to FirstCash's current products.