US fines Apple and Goldman Sachs over Apple Card

The United States fined Apple and Goldman Sachs a total of $89 million on Wednesday, accusing them of deceiving users of the iPhone-maker's credit card.

Customer service breakdowns and misrepresentations affected hundreds of thousands of users of Apple Card, launched in a collaboration with the US banking titan in 2019, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) said.

Apple failed to send tens of thousands of customer disputes about credit card transactions to Goldman Sachs, and when it did the bank did not follow federal requirements for investigating claims, the bureau said.

The bureau also said Apple and Goldman Sachs misled buyers about getting interest-free payment plans automatically when paying for Apple devices with the card, resulting in people unexpectedly paying for the debt.

"Apple and Goldman Sachs illegally sidestepped their legal obligations for Apple Card borrowers," CFPB Director Rohit Chopra said in a release.

"Big Tech companies and big Wall Street firms should not behave as if they are exempt from federal law."

Chopra added that the bureau is banning Goldman Sachs from offering a new consumer credit card unless it can show it will follow the law.

The CFPB criticized Apple and Goldman for launching Apple Card "despite third-party warnings to Goldman that the Apple Card disputes system was not ready due to technological issues."

As a result, Apple Card customers faced long waits for refunds and some saw their credit scores suffer, according to the bureau.

"We worked diligently to address certain technological and operational challenges that we experienced after launch and have already handled them with impacted customers," a Goldman Sachs spokesperson said in response to an AFP inquiry.

An Apple spokesperson told AFP that "upon learning about these inadvertent issues years ago, Apple worked closely with Goldman Sachs to quickly address them and help impacted customers."

"While we strongly disagree with the CFPB's characterization of Apple's conduct, we have aligned with them on an agreement."

The CFPB ordered Goldman Sachs to pay at least $19.8 million in compensation and a $45 million fine, while Apple was hit with a $25 million fine.