As manufacturers increasingly equip automobiles with Internet access, bankers and technologists are envisioning a day when cars could be used to make payments, inform risk underwriting and deliver targeted offers.

The Federal Housing Administration's new loan defect "taxonomy" may give lenders better clarity on the quality assurance reviews of FHA loans, but it's not a shield from possible enforcement action by the Department of Justice and other regulators.

Nationwide Bank in Columbus, Ohio has created an online car loan service that allows consumers to secure financing and insurance and shop for a car purchase.

The South Dakota company will soon be completely independent from National Australia Bank. The plan for now is to produce consistent results while scouting deals as the bank nears a key regulatory threshold.

California Republic Bancorp in Irvine has securitized and sold $390 million in notes backed by prime automobile loans.

Clearinghouse CDFI in Lake Forest, Calif., has acquired Arizona MultiBank Community Development, a community development financial institution that operates in the Southwestern U.S. and on Native American reservations.

Meta Financial Group in Sioux Falls, S.D., parent of MetaBank and Meta Payment Systems, is raising capital to fuel a future acquisition, and has renewed a significant prepaid card issuing relationship with NetSpend.

JPMorgan Chase will overhaul customer screening procedures to let more low-income consumers open checking and savings accounts under an agreement announced Tuesday with New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.

Citigroup failed one of the monitoring tests performed as part of the national mortgage settlement, according to new reports filed by NMS monitor Joseph Smith A. Jr.

Even if the U.S. government eases enforcement against banks processing wire transfers to developing countries, lawsuits brought by the plaintiffs' bar under the Anti-Terrorism Act may make banks continue to avoid providing remittance services to needy communities.

Hanmi Financial in Los Angeles has a new look for its retail bank.

Total mortgage origination balances hit $466 billion in the first quarter, a 74.4% increase from the same time a year ago, according to the latest Equifax National Consumer Credit Trends Report.

Equal-opportunity small business lending can go a long way toward helping minority groups rebuild the wealth lost during the Great Recession. The CFPB has delayed implementing reporting requirements that could close the credit gap for far too long.

PRA Government Services, an arm of debt-buying giant PRA Group, has launched an interactive tool designed to aid the understanding of complex city and county budgets.

Credit Protection Association LP has won a jury verdict in a case involving both the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

The issue of "credit invisibility" has attracted a great deal of attention in recent months. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released in May a study finding that 26 million Americans do not have a credit history, and another 18 million are unscorable because their histories are too limited.

The Bancorp in Wilmington, Del., again delayed the filing of its annual report after it found $24 million in additional loan losses that should have been reported in earlier periods.

As investment dollars flood into the alternative lending sector, fueling the rapid growth of early entrants such as Lending Club, lots of smaller online loan platforms are also popping up. Many of these new firms are specializing in narrow lending niches, touting their expertise in underwriting particular forms of credit. Here's a rundown of some of these specialties.

FHFA report shows FHLBs are well capitalized while Fannie and Freddie continue to see improving loan performance.

A federal district court temporarily halted an Orlando, Fla.-based operation for credit card robocall campaigns dating to 2011.