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Nonbank lenders are analyzing reams of data to help decide if they should make short-term loans to cash-strapped consumers who don't qualify for mainstream credit.
July 22 -
Credit lines and expanded overdraft programs are being considered as alternatives for banks that want to curb their customers' use of payday loans.
March 27 -
State and federal regulators appear to be orchestrating a series of actions to force financial institutions and third-party payment processors to stop doing business with certain online consumer installment lenders.
August 22
A top official in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's enforcement office has left the agency to join an online lender in California.
Neil Peretz, who had been an enforcement attorney at the CFPB, is now the general counsel for BillFloat, a company in San Francisco that offers short-term credit online to consumers.
The move is interesting since the CFPB has taken a keen interest in any company that offers online credit advances, like payday lenders. BillFloat describes itself as a high-tech, data-driven lender that also lets consumers buy smartphones with monthly payments.
"BillFloat has pioneered an entirely new approach to consumer finance that addresses a significant void in the marketplace," Peretz said in the press release. "By going beyond just the basic credit score to determine creditworthiness with a proprietary, real-time decisioning system, BillFloat gives consumers direct, instant access to the credit they need to meet their immediate short-term obligations and protect their financial future."
Peretz will oversee new product development and regulatory compliance at BillFloat, according to a recent announcement by the company. Peretz has an extensive regulatory background having led enforcement investigations at the CFPB and co-authored its rulemaking on electronic funds transfers. He was also a trial attorney with the Justice Department's corporate and financial law section and a diplomat to the People's Republic of China for the Securities and Exchange Commission.
"Neil's deep and diverse experience in consumer credit, financing and regulatory compliance is a tremendous asset to our team," BillFloat's co-founder and chief executive, Ryan Gilbert, said in the release. "We are eager to apply his expertise as we move forward in developing the creative financial solutions that both consumers and small businesses desperately need to navigate this tough financial climate."
