Connecticut, alongside a coalition of 50 states and territories, has reached a $20 million settlement with payment processor ACI Worldwide. This settlement stems from a 2021 testing error by ACI, which led to the unauthorized withdrawal of $2.3 billion from Nationstar Mortgage (also known as Mr. Cooper) customers. In Connecticut, the state will receive $558,740 from this settlement, which includes a $220,000 additional payment due to the state’s leadership role in the multistate, multi-agency action.

The violations occurred on April 23, 2021, when ACI Payments erroneously used live customer data during a test of its Speedpay platform, leading to unexpected and sometimes multiple mortgage payments being withdrawn from customer accounts. In some cases, this exposed consumers to overdraft or insufficient funds fees. While the majority of withdrawals didn’t go through, 1.4 million transactions totaling $2.3 billion were processed, affecting 480,000 Mr. Cooper customers, including 7,136 consumers in Connecticut. The settlement mandates ACI to use artificially created data for testing systems or software, separate testing and development from consumer systems, and undergo regular reporting for two years to ensure compliance.

This multistate settlement aims to protect consumers and ensure that such errors are not repeated, and it has been applauded by Attorney General Tong and Banking Commissioner Jorge Perez. Impacted consumers have already received compensation through a separate class-action settlement. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has also issued a $25 million penalty and consent order against ACI, further committing the company to consumer safeguards.