Merchant

OnDeck Capital, the online lender whose initial public offering raised eyebrows in December, posted a net loss of $4.3 million for the fourth quarter in its first report as a public company.

With the economy recovering, Chris Hurn saw an opportunity to start another company focused on Small Business Administration 504 loans — his longtime specialty — and spread the word to business owners about the benefits of owning their facilities.

Student loan debt remains a pressing concern in the U.S. because of high balances and high rates of delinquencies and defaults. The issues have been discussed in recent blog posts by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Liberty Street Economics team.

Responding to reports last week that its encryption keys had been stolen by U.S. and British spies five years ago, Gemalto contends its products are secure and announced it would reveal results of its investigation into the claims at a press conference Feb. 25 in Paris.

The credit card delinquency rate remained steady in Q4 compared with a year earlier, while total outstanding credit card balance increased 5%. The increase indicates record growth, the highest yearly jump seen since 2008, according to a TransUnion report.

Selling offshore requires proper planning, careful selection of service providers, and a thorough understanding of each new market. But each international market represents a chance to add customers and increase revenue.

A bill introduced in the New York State Senate would make it illegal for debt collectors and creditors to use social media when attempting to collect debts.

With Apple Pay gaining momentum, Google Inc. reportedly is planning to relaunch a new version of its wallet in late May at the Google I/O, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Prepaid card and ATM management company Meta Payments has reached a partnership with Ubiquity Global Services to manage customer service and other customer management.

South Dakota officials are hoping the state legislature grants authority for the creation of a state office for debt collection, a proposal supporters believe could help bring in additional recoveries of up to $34 million in the next five years.