Commercial lending

Cornerstone Community Credit Union in Des Moines, Iowa, has partnered with the online marketplace lender LendingPoint to provide loan products for its members that struggle to qualify for traditional financing.

It is time for institutions to act independently of the Federal Reserve and raise their loan interest rates to improve returns.

JPMorgan Chase said it would need to boost reserves for impaired energy loans by $1.5 billion if oil prices hold at about $25 a barrel over 18 months.

OnDeck Capital in New York reported a $5.1 million loss in the fourth quarter as revenue failed to keep pace with rising expenses.

HSBC Holdings posted an unexpected fourth-quarter loss, its first since at least 2009, as revenue dropped and loans to oil and gas companies drove a jump in impairment charges.

The terms "peer-to-peer" and "marketplace" lending are often used interchangeably to define all manner of loans made through the Internet. The reality, though, is that aside from lacking storefronts, the many firms now operating in this arena have little in common with one another. Here's a guide to help tell them apart.

About 10% of midsize businesses say they want to develop a relationship with nonbank providers, such as marketplace lenders or business development companies, and even more are said to be considering switching banks.

The NCUA's plan to expand credit unions' business-lending powers generated more than 3,000 comment letters, mostly from bankers urging a "no" vote. But the agency's board is expected to stick by its original proposal.

There are millions of businesses deserving of loans that banks using traditional data resources might overlook due to their thin credit histories.

The burgeoning industry has been hoping the Supreme Court would overturn a problematic lower-court ruling, but the unexpected passing of a conservative stalwart makes that outcome less likely.