Retail & Commercial

CommonBond, an online lender that specializes in student loan refinancing, announced Monday that it has sold $150 million of bundled loans to investors.

The CFPB ordered New Jersey-based collection law firm Pressler and Pressler LLP and debt buyer New Century Financial Services Inc. to stop churning out collection lawsuits allegedly based on nonexistent or flimsy evidence.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ordered the New Jersey law firm Pressler and Pressler and a debt buyer to pay $2.5 million for allegedly filing "mass-produced" lawsuits against consumers based on nonexistent debts.

Opus Bank in Irvine, Calif., reported a profit of $17.1 million in the first quarter, up 56% from a year earlier, as strong loan growth more than offset higher expenses and an uptick in problem loans. Its earnings per share climbed 50%, to 51 cents.

Bank of Hawaii in Honolulu said Monday that its first-quarter profit increased 18.3%, to $50.2 million, from a year earlier thanks to strong loan growth, improved credit quality and a hefty gain on sales of its Visa shares.

JPMorgan Chase has added fingerprint authentication for customers on Android devices.

Freddie Mac has revised downward its economic forecast for the remainder of 2016 following a tepid first quarter, but still remains upbeat about the housing market.

Lance Osborne is vying for two board seats at First Niles Financial in Ohio, but he isn’t pushing the thrift to sell itself. Rather, he wants management to pull money out of securities to make more loans.

The prepaid card industry is ramping up its advocacy efforts on Capitol Hill as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau readies a final rule targeting such products.

The expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act is reducing medical debt in collections for some low-income consumers, according to a study from the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER).