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IN THE MATTER OF: BILLMO LLC ("BillMo") |
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CONSENT ORDER |
WHEREAS, the Banking Commissioner (“Commissioner”) is charged with the administration of Part V of Chapter 668, Sections 36a-595 to 36a-612, inclusive, of the Connecticut General Statutes, “Payment Instruments. Money Transmission Act”;
WHEREAS, BillMo is a Connecticut limited liability company with an office at 765 Straits Turnpike, Middlebury, Connecticut;
WHEREAS, the Commissioner, through the Consumer Credit Division of the Department of Banking, conducted an investigation pursuant to Section 36a-17 of the Connecticut General Statutes into the activities of BillMo to determine if it had violated, was violating or was about to violate the provisions of the Connecticut General Statutes within the jurisdiction of the Commissioner;
WHEREAS, as a result of such investigation, the Commissioner alleges that, during the period of August 2015 to the present, BillMo engaged in the business of money transmission in this state without a license, in violation of Section 36a-597(a) of the Connecticut General Statutes;
WHEREAS, the Commissioner believes that such allegation would support initiation of enforcement proceedings against BillMo, including proceedings to issue a cease and desist order pursuant to Sections 36a-608(c) and 36a-52(a) of the Connecticut General Statutes, and to impose a civil penalty of up to one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) per violation pursuant to Sections 36a-608(c) and 36a-50(a) of the Connecticut General Statutes;
WHEREAS, initiation of such enforcement proceedings would constitute a “contested case” within the meaning of Section 4-166(4) of the Connecticut General Statutes;
WHEREAS, Section 4-177(c) of the Connecticut General Statutes and Section 36a-1-55(a) of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies provide that a contested case may be resolved by consent order, unless precluded by law;
WHEREAS, both the Commissioner and BillMo acknowledge the possible consequences of formal administrative proceedings, and BillMo voluntarily agrees to consent to the entry of the sanctions imposed below without admitting or denying the allegation set forth herein, and solely for the purpose of obviating the need for formal administrative proceedings concerning the allegation set forth herein;
WHEREAS, the Commissioner and BillMo now desire to resolve the matters set forth herein;
WHEREAS, BillMo specifically assures the Commissioner that the violation alleged herein shall not occur in the future;
WHEREAS, on January 11, 2017, BillMo filed on the Nationwide Multistate Licensing System (“NMLS”), an application to engage in the business of money transmission in this state, which application is currently pending;
WHEREAS, BillMo represents that its Connecticut money transmission activities are limited to having a place of business in this state and administering a mobile application named BillMo through which Connecticut consumers may send funds to beneficiaries in Mexico through CBW Bank, a federally-insured, out-of-state bank chartered in Kansas;
WHEREAS, BillMo represents that only 11 Connecticut consumers have used the BillMo mobile application to transfer funds, and that CBW Bank retains all liability for transmission of such funds;
WHEREAS, BillMo also represents that it has never: (1) received money or monetary value in this state or from a person located in this state for money transmission purposes, (2) transmitted money or monetary value from a location in this state or to a person located in this state, (3) issued stored value or payment instruments that are sold in this state, or (4) sold stored value or payment instruments in this state;
WHEREAS, BillMo acknowledges that this Consent Order is a public record and is a reportable event for the purposes of the regulatory disclosure questions on NMLS, as applicable;
AND WHEREAS, BillMo, through its execution of this Consent Order, voluntarily agrees to waive its procedural rights, including a right to a notice and an opportunity for a hearing as it pertains to the allegation set forth herein, and voluntarily waives its right to seek judicial review or otherwise challenge or contest the validity of this Consent Order.
CONSENT TO ENTRY OF SANCTIONS
WHEREAS, BillMo, through its execution of this Consent Order, consents to the Commissioner’s entry of a Consent Order imposing the following sanctions:
| 1. | No later than the date this Consent Order is executed by BillMo, it shall remit to the Department of Banking by wire transfer, cashier’s check, certified check or money order made payable to “Treasurer, State of Connecticut”, the sum of Three Thousand Dollars ($3,000) as payment for back licensing fees; and |
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BillMo shall cease and desist from engaging in the business of money transmission in this state without a license, in violation of Section 36a-597(a) of the Connecticut General Statutes.
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CONSENT ORDER
NOW THEREFORE, the Commissioner enters the following:
| 1. | The sanctions set forth above be and are hereby entered; |
| 2. | Upon issuance of this Consent Order by the Commissioner, this matter will be resolved and the Commissioner will not take any future enforcement action against BillMo based upon the allegation set forth herein; provided that issuance of this Consent Order is without prejudice to the right of the Commissioner to take enforcement action against BillMo based upon a violation of this Consent Order or the matters underlying its entry, if the Commissioner determines that compliance with the terms herein is not being observed or if any representation made by BillMo and reflected herein is subsequently discovered to be untrue; |
| 3. | Upon issuance of this Consent Order by the Commissioner, and so long as this Consent Order is promptly disclosed by BillMo and its control persons on NMLS, as applicable, nothing in the issuance of this Consent Order shall adversely affect the ability of BillMo to apply for or obtain initial or renewal licenses under Part V of Chapter 668, Sections 36a-595 et seq., of the Connecticut General Statutes, provided all applicable legal requirements for such licenses are satisfied; and |
| 4. |
This Consent Order shall become final when issued.
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Issued at Hartford, Connecticut
this 11th day of April 2017. ______/s/__________
Jorge L. Perez
Banking Commissioner
I, Steven LaBella, state on behalf of BillMo LLC, that I have read the foregoing Consent Order; that I know and fully understand its contents; that I am authorized to execute this Consent Order on behalf of BillMo LLC; that BillMo LLC agrees freely and without threat or coercion of any kind to comply with the sanctions entered and terms and conditions ordered herein; and that BillMo LLC voluntarily agrees to enter into this Consent Order, expressly waiving the procedural rights set forth herein as to the matters described herein.
By: ________/s/___________
Name: Steven LaBella
Title: CEO
BillMo LLC
State of: Connecticut
County of: New London
On this the 21 day of March 2017, before me, Denise Delisle, the undersigned officer, personally appeared Steven LaBella who acknowledged himself/herself to be the CEO of BillMo LLC, a member managed/manager managed limited liability company, and that he/she as such Steven LaBella, being authorized so to do, executed the foregoing instrument for the purposes therein contained, by signing the name of the limited liability company by himself/herself as CEO.
In witness whereof I hereunto set my hand.
__________/s/___________
Notary Public:
Date Commission Expires: Jul 31, 2021