Banking

A former economist says high-ranking officials engaged in “legally risky” behavior to downplay consumer harm; online payments and contactless transactions jumped in the first quarter, and some think the new habits will stick.

Consumers are using their debit and credit cards less, and that's causing a decline in interchange income for credit unions and banks.

The ratings firm also took negative action with respect to Ally, Synchrony, Discover, Sallie Mae and Navient, citing the impact that the coronavirus crisis is having on their revenues and profits.

The bureau issued an interpretive rule clarifying that consumers under certain conditions can modify or waive waiting periods required by the Truth in Lending Act and Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act.

The lenders are bracing for spikes in delinquencies or defaults on loans to a sector heavily punished by social distancing measures.

The Small Business Administration's last-minute plan to temporarily block larger banks from the relief loan program is another example of the agency changing the rules midstream, critics said.

U.K. ATM operator LINK reported that its cash withdrawals have fallen by 60% over the past month ending April 27 when compared to the same period one year earlier.

The company’s latest Credit Union Trends Report predicts that membership and lending will stall as job losses rise and consumer demand for loans dries up.

Rodney Hood, chairman of the National Credit Union Administration, says the agency's Central Liquidity Facility can be a vital backstop if a crisis occurs, but it will be stronger if more credit unions chip in to make it a success.

Treasury secretary says big firms that took PPP loans should apologize, not just return the money; German fintech’s shares drop 26% as audit fails to rebut accounting fraud allegations.

The Small Business Administration has processed more than 476,000 applications from struggling small-business owners, but lenders say access to the second round of the Paycheck Protection Program has been spotty.

Whether presented at the teller line or through digital channels, the best way to prevent fraud is by triangulating items in real-time against a robust fraud database. To strengthen the database, fraud data needs to be contributed in return, says Advance Fraud Solutions' Ted Kirk.

Some bankers, economists, policy experts and even Mark Cuban say that creative uses of overdraft programs could be lifelines for consumers and businesses whose finances have been upended by the coronavirus crisis.

Elected officials are better off deciding who’s most deserving of federally backed coronavirus relief funds for small businesses.

Financial institutions are finding that on-screen agents can offer most services that occur in a branch, but with a more personal touch than the phone or internet.

Just over 40% of respondents with private student loans said they had worked with their lenders to come up with a plan for reduced payments.

Fintechs in the payments industry saw problems coming when the CARES Act’s SBA Paycheck Protection Program opened the floodgates for millions of coronavirus-stricken small businesses to apply for loans.

Lawmakers should approve a program to distribute stimulus funds using a government-sanctioned coin, which would be speedier than the current system.

Chris Skinner, the author of "Doing Digital," defends banks' response to the coronavirus crisis and discusses why he thinks the tech giants won't be able to take market share away from traditional financial institutions.