Analytics

In concert with the release of new data indicating 40% of all payment cards and 71% of terminals worldwide now support the EMV standard, EMVCo LLC, the organization managing the EMV specifications, on May 20 released a new guide to help expand adoption of the chip-and-PIN technology.

In another sign that U.S. consumer credit card issuers are beginning to see some new-account growth following the recession, Equifax Inc. on May 20 reported new bankcard accounts in February were up 28% compared with a year earlier.

CHICAGO–Evolving mobile technology is leading payment companies to develop new business models to capture revenue in a market many observers believe soon will offer enormous opportunities, executives said here May 20 during a panel discussion at the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago’s annual conference.

Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson’s office on May 20 sued debt collection giant Encore Capital Group Inc. for allegedly using fraudulent “robo-signed” affidavits in lawsuits against consumers.

Australian credit card debt has climbed to a record high, with total outstandings reaching AU$49.3 billion (US$52 billion or 36.8 billion euros) in March, up 4.7% from AU$47.1 billion a year earlier, according to the Reserve Bank of Australia.

The Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act last year put an end to many consumer credit card practices lawmakers considered unfair, but it had little effect on business-oriented credit cards, most of which continue to skirt the new rules, a new study suggests.

The average U.S. credit card charge-off rate in April likely fell again as it headed toward historic lows, suggest preliminary monthly account-default data from the nation’s top credit card issuers Moody’s Investors Service analyzed.

The national mortgage delinquency rate (the rate of borrowers 60 or more days past due) decreased for the fifth consecutive quarter, dropping to 6.19% at the end of the first quarter, according to TransUnion.

Debt buyer Asta Funding Inc. reported flat earnings and revenue May 10 and a drop in cash collections for the fiscal second quarter ended March 31. The Englewood Cliffs, N.J.-based firm also reported spending more on credit card and other debt portfolios during the quarter.

New Zealand’s small-business owners increasingly are using their own personal credit cards to finance their companies, research from Massey University’s Center for Small and Medium Enterprise Research has found.

A study commissioned by the three largest credit-reporting firms found that less than 1% of consumer credit reports had errors leading to a significant change in the score.

Consumer credit card debt increased slightly in March by about $2 billion, marking only the second such monthly increase since 2008, according to data from the latest monthly G.19 Federal Reserve Board report.

Consumer credit card debt increased slightly in March by about $2 billion, marking only the second such monthly increase since 2008, according to data the Federal Reserve Board released May 6.

When Judge W. Douglas Baird ordered collection agency Mark One Financial LLC to stop contacting Melanie Beacham and her family and friends on Facebook, it quickly raised questions about the role courts will play in governing the use of social networks by collectors.

The steady decline in credit card charge-offs that continued through the first quarter helped make issuers’ earnings look good, but that trend cannot continue forever, Fitch Ratings Inc. warned in a May 6 special report.

Debt buyer Portfolio Recovery Associates (PRA) last week reported record net income, cash collections and revenue in the first quarter ended March 31.

Citing convenience and low interest rates, many credit cardholders prefer to leave a balance on one or more credit cards and accept revolving as a way of life, and this is helping issuers to generate more interest income, new research suggests.

Borrowing on credit cards is close to bottoming out, according to lenders, but the nation's biggest players have had to cede market share during the sharpest contraction in the industry's history. Now they are increasingly fighting for the same kinds of customers.

CHICAGO—New technology and its associated costs are causing a dilemma in the United States payments space as the industry needs to determine when to adapt without falling too far behind other countries, an executive from the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta told attendees here during a panel discussion May 3 at the Smart Card Alliance’s annual conference.

Sony Corp. is reporting that 12,700 credit and debit card numbers and expiration dates were exposed in a separate database from that affected by the massive PlayStation breach.