With the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau shifting its focus more to automotive financing, one of the aspects of automotive deals that is under fire is dealer mark-ups, or bumps in interest rates.

Dealer financing mark-ups have long been a accepted practice in the industry, but the CFPB contends this type of deal is ripe for discrimination. As such, the future of that practice — which essentially serves as a commission for dealers — is in question.

That said, there are some online marketplaces that don’t utilize the practice, such as Swapalease.com.

Scot Hall, executive vice president of Swapalease.com, said, “Part of the issue concerning the CFPB’s decision here is to help level the playing field for consumers shopping for a car loan.

“What’s different through the online lease transfer process is that car shoppers are not looking to qualify for a particular rate. The bank reviews their credit history to determine if they have the credentials to take over the lease. Dealer mark-ups are not a part of the process through the online transfer marketplace,” he continued.

Though dealer mark-ups may not have a place on the Web’s automotive marketplaces, they have been a fixture in F&I offices for many years — and a main source of income at that.

But more regulatory pressure is coming.

At an auto finance field hearing hosted by the CFPB in mid-September, this was a hot button topic.

During the event, CFPB director Richard Cordray, expressed worries about discrimination within the dealer mark-up process.

“And in our supervisory experience, we have found that when an indirect lender has a policy allowing the dealer to use its discretion to mark up the loan without regard to the actual credit profile of the consumer, and to benefit from that markup, the risk of discrimination increases,” Cordray said.