PayThink

It's easy to get lost in the hype and extremes of rising student debt when, in reality, 72% of borrowers owe less than $25,000 and fewer than 5% owe more than $75,000.

The economic downturn combined with continued regulatory overhead and uncertainty, have rendered many lending products potentially obsolete for large portions of a portfolio. This in turn reduces the amount of capital a credit union is willing to invest in a product line for loan growth.

A quick read of a recent New York Times story could suggest a tidal move back into subprime lending. But a closer look reveals a major exception: before the crisis, consumers with weak credit were warmly invited to borrow on unsecured bank credit cards. No more.

With the CFPB looking broadly at third-party relationships, lenders need to know the qualifications of anyone handling an account for them. Giving carte blanche to middlemen to hire car repossession agents may no longer be an option.

Few managers manage costs. Instead, they manage the elements around cost, such as headcount. That never illuminates how work can be done differently to create permanent operating efficiencies.

I was reminded recently that the origin of the term vigilante stemmed from the vigilance committees formed in our nation's early days on the frontier where official law enforcement was either weak or nonexistent. They were established for the purpose of providing an environment where law abiding folks could be protected from the law breakers. Vigilance committees were noble and well-intentioned, but often quickly deteriorated into mobs and were characterized by outbreaks of mob rule.

First the Republicans pass a bill they must know had zero chance of enactment, misleadingly claiming it will cut the deficit. Even more absurdly, they then compare the Office of Financial Research to Big Brother.

Particularly vexing is one bank’s requirement that cardholders sign up for a payment protection service before receiving materials describing it. Hawaii deserves praise for protecting residents from these questionable practices.

In October of last year the acting chairman of the FDIC said at the annual ABA meeting, "the FDIC is going to undertake a number in initiatives to further our understanding of the challenges and opportunities for community banks."

Citigroup's shareholders have latched onto what was formerly a radical idea. Namely, that CEOs like Vikram Pandit should receive gigantic pay packages tied to performance only after they've actually performed. Wall Street bosses beware.