Consumer lending

Data as of Mar. 31, 2022. Dollars in thousands.

Data as of Mar. 31, 2022. Dollars in thousands.

Late-payment rates are rising at nonbanks that lend to people with lower credit scores. "We're probably entering a stretch where you're going to see a separation between those that are relatively good underwriters and those that are not," one analyst said.

Equifax said some consumer credit scores were changed because of a computer error that has since been rectified.

Even though delinquency rates were previously at extremely low levels, the recent uptick among poorer consumers is worth monitoring, New York Fed researchers said.

The San Francisco company is relying more on banks and credit unions, and its own acquisition of a bank last year, to fund its consumer lending business. The flexibility has proved helpful as demand from other loan buyers wanes.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau claimed that Hyundai Capital America hurt borrowers by incorrectly reporting they were late on payments.

President Biden is considering extending a pause on student loan repayments for several more months, as well as forgiving $10,000 in student loan debt per borrower, according to people familiar with the matter, as he seeks to appeal to young voters ahead of the November midterms.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said “time is running out” for military student loan borrowers to obtain debt relief under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.

The McLean, Virginia, company is starting to “trim around the edges” of its auto portfolio, CEO Richard Fairbank said. That move stands in contrast with Capital One's leaning into its credit card business, which helped push marketing spending above $1 billion.

Vikram Pandit, who led Citi for five years, and Ash Gupta, who helped lead American Express for 41 years, have collaborated on a risk decisioning program meant to help make digital lending more efficient and cost-effective at banks of all sizes.

Bank of America is keeping to its original hiring plans despite challenging economic conditions that have prompted others to pull back, Chief Executive Brian Moynihan said.

The Detroit-based lender has been a major beneficiary of the auto market’s growth during the pandemic. Looking ahead, company executives expect demand to be particularly strong among higher-income customers who have little sensitivity to higher car prices and rising interest rates.

As Celsius Network’s customer withdrawal freeze enters a full month, the beleaguered crypto lender has paid back a string of debts totaling more than $900 million during the same period to decentralized-finance platforms. 

Searching Google for information about student loan forgiveness surfaces advertisements that either appear to violate content policies or lead people to scams, according to a watchdog group, increasing public confusion as the Biden administration mulls actions on student debt.

The Texas company concealed no-cost repayment plans from borrowers and collected “hundreds of millions of dollars” in reborrowing fees, the agency said.

Klarna Bank, which advertises itself as a way to spread the cost of the latest brands and smartphones, is shelling out loans for milk and gas with cash-strapped customers looking for ways to cover basic necessities.

The online consumer lender touts its AI-based underwriting models as a key strength, but analysts say larger-than-expected losses on some of its loans are contributing to funding pressures.

Consumers welcome more generous forgiveness policies and the chance to have past defaults erased from their record, but they need assistance connecting the dots, financial services executives say.

The Singapore-based crypto lender that announced a freeze on withdrawals on Monday said it has signed a tentative agreement to be acquired by rival Nexo.