Consumer lending

Readers react to the Senate regulatory relief bill, weigh in on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s innovation initiative, chime in on whether banks need to provide more value in a digital age and more.

While some key indicators dropped in the year ending Dec. 31, 2017, credit unions in many states continue to thrive, with several new states jumping to the head of the pack for various growth measurements.

A bill before Missouri's House of Representatives has several provisions that would put more regulations on payday lenders without harming CUs offering similar, safer products.

The bank says CEO had no input into $325 million loan to Trump's son-in-law; Fifth Third, First Republic take equity stake in online student loan lender.

Are American college students using their student loan dollars wisely? A LendEDU study explored how those funds are spent.

Just as promised, Republican lawmakers went to work Wednesday considering regulatory reform ideas that would go further than the Senate's tweaks of the Dodd-Frank Act.

In the joint report with the Federal Trade Commission on debt collection practices, the CFPB said it had initiated four enforcement actions last year, had resolved one case and has five others pending.

The Federal Reserve raised interest rates by a quarter-point at its Wednesday meeting and more increases are expected this year. Here's what credit unions need to know to be prepared.

FIs say that an appeals court’s decision to ease restrictions will allow them to warn customers more easily when loans are past due or accounts have been compromised. But consumer groups argue that the decision gives financial firms license to market their products more aggressively and could lead to more harassing phone calls over unpaid debts.

Fifth Third and First Republic are among the investors in the company’s $50 million equity round.

Banks say that an appeals court’s decision to ease restrictions will allow them to warn customers more easily when loans are past due or accounts have been compromised. But consumer groups argue that the decision gives financial firms license to market their products more aggressively and could lead to more harassing phone calls over unpaid debts.

The legislation, signed Monday by Gov. Rick Scott, authorizes 60- to 90-day loans of up to $1,000. It makes Florida the first state to pass a law designed to blunt the impact of the CFPB’s payday lending rule.

The agency's decision to lift a 2002 consent order against Ace Cash Express could lead to a revival of partnerships between national banks and payday lenders.

The bank is the latest to report required pay discrepancies in their British units; the DOJ and SEC are looking into sales practices at the bank’s wealth management unit.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., raised ethics concerns about Mick Mulvaney's dual role leading both the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Office of Management and Budget.

Under Richard Cordray, the consumer bureau had questioned whether affiliations between small-dollar lenders and sovereign tribes are exempt from state laws, but observers say the agency’s acting chief has signaled a more welcoming approach.

Use of alternative data in traditional credit scoring would help consumers access the banking system and lower their cost of credit.

Ken Rees at Elevate Credit calls payday lending "the roach motel of financial products" and says his alternative has helped subprime borrowers get back on their feet.

As it expands to the West Coast, the bank will first target car dealers at which it is already an indirect consumer lender.

A former senior executive at Equifax Inc. was criminally charged for allegedly selling almost $1 million worth of shares before the company’s announcement last year that it had suffered a massive data breach.