World Acceptance Corporation

World Acceptance Corporation is a consumer finance company specializing in small, short-term installment loans. In August 2020, the company agreed to pay $21.7 million to settle charges with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The SEC found that the company’s Mexican subsidiary had paid bribes to union and government officials over nearly a decade to secure loan approvals and prevent regulatory audits. The SEC stated the company “created the perfect environment for illicit activity to occur.”

Separately, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has investigated World Acceptance Corporation for predatory lending practices. In 2018, the CFPB was cited as having been established to protect consumers from lenders like the company. The CFPB’s investigation into the company’s lending activities remains a matter of public record. This pattern of regulatory enforcement—spanning both corrupt international business practices and domestic consumer finance probes—demonstrates systemic governance failures directly tied to its core business of extending credit.