Fox Hills Cash Facing ‘Rent-a-Tribe’ Class Action in Illinois Over Loan Interest Rates

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A proposed class action lawsuit claims the owners of online lender FoxHillsCash.com are behind an illegal “rent-a-tribe” scheme whereby they have issued loans with unlawful interest rates to Illinois residents.

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The 19-page lawsuit says that although those who operate Wakpamni Lake Community Corporation (WLCC) and subsidiary WLCC Lending FHC—which does business as Fox Hills Cash—claim that the companies are owned by the federally recognized Oglala Sioux Tribe, the non-tribal lenders in fact “fraudulently [hide] behind” the tribe’s sovereign immunity in an effort to evade state usury laws.

The suit also names as defendants Geneva Lone Hill, president of WLCC; Bret A. Crandall, the corporation’s director of compliance; and WLCC CEO Raycen Raines, III, who is also known as Raycen American Horse Raines and who allegedly “[took] a lead role” in establishing the online lending business at issue.

According to the case, the defendants have made loans to consumers through FoxHillsCash.com at “triple digit interest rates.” The complaint explains that these illegal loans were made in the name of the Native American tribe by which the defendants falsely claim to be owned in order to “circumvent state interest rate caps.” Per the case, tribal members neither participate in nor benefit from the lending business.

Under the Illinois Interest Act, loans issued by unlicensed entities at more than nine percent interest are unlawful and considered void, the filing relays. In addition, the state’s criminal usury statute stipulates that making a loan at over 20 percent interest constitutes a felony, the lawsuit shares.

The plaintiff, a Chicago resident, took out a $450 loan from Fox Hills Cash in July 2021 with an annual percentage rate of more than 851 percent—wildly in excess of the lawful interest rate, the suit states.

Per the case, WLCC has operated a slew of other lending operations as either subsidiaries or under “assumed names,” including:

• WLCC Lending FDL, doing business as Fast Day Loans;
• WLCC Lending BGL, doing business as Bison Green Lending;
• WLCC Lending JEM, doing business as Explore Credit;
• WLCC Lending AIL, doing business as Good Loans Fast;
• WLCC Lending TLP, doing business as Rapid Loan;
• Black Hawk Financial, doing business as Title Loan Fast;
• WLCC Lending MSS, doing business as MyBackWallet;
• WLCC Lending GEG, doing business as TheGanEdenGroup.com;
• CheckAdvanceUSA.net;
• WLCC Lending CFC, doing business as Consumer First Credit;
• Green Circle Lending;
• Rolling Plains Cash;
• Cash on Cloud 9;
• Easy Cash Online Store;
• BaysideCash.com;
• Whisper Rock, LLC;
• BeachsideCash.com;
• BlvdCash.com;
• Fast Money Store;
• FiresideCash.com;
• Seaside Dollar;
• SeasidePayday.com;
• WLCC Lending MFT, doing business as Merit Financial Trust; and
• WLCC Lending MFT, doing business as Ocean Park Funding.

The lawsuit looks to represent:

“(a) [All] individuals with Illinois addresses (b) to whom a loan was made in the name of WLCC Lending FHC d/b/a Fox Hills Cash at more than 9% interest (c) which loan has not been paid in full;”

“(a) [All] individuals with Illinois addresses (b) to whom a loan was made in the name of WLCC Lending FHC d/b/a Fox Hills Cash at more than 9% interest (c) which loan is still outstanding or has been paid on or after a date two years prior to the filing of suit;”

“(a) [All] individuals with Illinois addresses (b) to whom a loan was made in the name of WLCC Lending FHC d/b/a Fox Hills Cash at more than 36% interest (all of its loans qualify) (c) on or after March 23, 2021;” and

“(a) [All] individuals with Illinois addresses (b) to whom a loan was made in the name of WLCC Lending FHC d/b/a Fox Hills Cash at more than 18% interest (c) which loan was made on or after a date four years prior to the filing of suit.”

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