Consumer lending

The subprime auto lender failed to disclose that it received fees for referring borrowers to CarMax, the used-car dealer, according to California's financial regulator.

The St. Louis-based company partnered with 38 new credit unions last fiscal year.

The Auburn Hills, Mich.-based credit union serves 200,000 members with more than $2.3 billion in assets.

Growing numbers of small subprime auto lenders are shutting down after loan losses and slim margins spur banks and private equity owners to cut off funding.

The agency’s acting director uses a reply letter to the senator not to answer her questions but to underscore that Congress lacks the ability to compel answers to such questions.

The Atlanta bank will hold the loans on its books and pay Microf for a fee the referrals. The partnership will further its expansion in consumer lending.

Late-payment rates at banks declined in nine out of the 11 consumer loan categories tracked by the American Bankers Association, including credit cards, auto loans and personal loans.

While the banking industry is divided on the use of conversational technology, the San Francisco company believes chatbots can make it easier for customers to discuss their finances.

The agency would be subject to congressional and White House oversight; American customers will be able to send money to 200 countries.

The state’s banking regulator said that the online consumer lender made over 46,000 small loans to Bay State consumers without a license. The company surrendered its license to the state regulator as part of a 2011 consent order.