Minn. Dept. of Commerce Fines Two Agencies for Unlicensed Collection Activity

A pair of collection operations have waived their rights to a hearing before the Minnesota Department of Commerce and agreed to fines — one for $10,000 and one for $7,000 — for engaging in unlicensed collection activity in the state.

RSI Enterprises has been fined $10,000 and Advanced Portfolio Group has been fined $10,000 — but $3,000 of that penalty was stayed. The fines mark the fourth and fifth enforcement action against a collection operation for unlicensed debt collection activity or unlicensed debt buying in Minnesota in the past four months. Copies of the enforcement orders can be accessed here and here.

Details of the alleged activity, such as how many accounts were collected or for how long the agencies operated in the state without the proper license were not disclosed. In both cases, the companies had the right to request a hearing before the Department of Commerce Commissioner and both companies waived that right in order to reach the settlement.

The stayed portion of the fine against Advanced Portfolio Group may be lifted if the company commits any further violation of the law. If the stay has not been lifted by August 2025, the stayed portion of the penalty will be vacated.

The enforcement order against RSI indicated that the company engaged in unlicensed debt collection activity in 2021 and 2022, but the order against Advanced Portfolio Group did not provide any timeline. The order against RSI also included a license number for the company, which may indicate it has since obtained the required license to collect in Minnesota. RSI was also ordered to pay $225 in investigative costs.