NY S01726

Expands New York usury laws to cover "financing arrangements" beyond traditional loans, including merchant cash advances, buy-now pay-later transactions, earned wage access products, rent-to-own agreements, litigation financing, income-sharing agreements, and education financing

Broadens the definition of interest to include all amounts paid to lenders such as fees, tips, renewal charges, credit insurance premiums, debt suspension products, discounts on advances, and any ancillary products sold with credit extensions

Maintains the default interest rate cap of 6% per annum (unless otherwise prescribed by the Superintendent of Financial Services) and the criminal usury threshold of 25% per annum, while applying these limits to the expanded category of financing arrangements

Requires licensing for entities entering into financing arrangements of $25,000 or less for personal purposes or $50,000 or less for business purposes when charging rates above what would otherwise be permitted by law

Grants the Attorney General authority to adopt rules and issue guidance to interpret and enforce the financing arrangement definitions, and removes restrictions preventing the AG from characterizing rental-purchase agreements as credit transactions