Marketplace lending

The 34-page document demands that the bank get regulatory nonobjection for every new fintech partnership and requires the bank to step up its monitoring of partners' compliance with banking laws.

A new group called MoreThanFair aims to establish the lines between fair and unfair lending, to set best practices for the use of AI in lending and to lessen the stigma of fintech lenders.

The state banking commissioner criticized the online peer-to-peer lender's tipping policies, failure to disclose tips and lack of lending and collections licenses in the state.

Banks and companies that use artificial intelligence to make loans agree with regulators that it should be tested for fairness. But they also say traditional loans could be just as biased.

The digital lender, which bought Radius Bancorp in February, still expects to record a full-year loss partly because of merger-related costs. But its stock price soared Thursday after it reported second-quarter net income of $9.37 million.

KMD Partners, which makes high-interest rate loans through its CreditNinja brand, has agreed to acquire the $11.7 million-asset Liberty Bank. The purchase is likely to draw scrutiny, but the companies argue that it will help borrowers with lower credit scores qualify for less expensive loans.

The acting comptroller of the currency, appointed by the Biden administration, signaled that the regulation meant to provide legal clarity about the secondary market is safe for the time being.

The maker of software that helps banks offer "buy now, pay later" loans at the point of sale says its latest funding round has pushed it into unicorn status.

Some worry the Senate’s rejection of the OCC rule hampers efforts to clarify legal standards for banks selling loans to fintechs.