Consumer lending

Large and regional banks are not only slashing overdraft fees, they’re introducing small-dollar loans to help customers cope with income shortfalls. The policy changes made recently by just five banks could save consumers as much as $2 billion a year, according to a new analysis.

The Federal Trade Commission recently issued an advisory opinion that could make it easier for consumers to recover their legal costs from banks in situations where they were defrauded by a car dealer.

The company has agreed to pay at least $3.75 million to resolve allegations that it violated the District of Columbia’s 24% interest rate cap.

Borrowing on plastic climbed by $52 billion in the fourth quarter, the New York Fed found, as consumers splurged on holiday shopping and inflation drove up the cost of goods and services. It's the biggest jump in the 22 years the data has been tracked.

On Sep. 30, 2021. Dollars in thousands.

On Sep. 30, 2021. Dollars in thousands.

Fifteen consumer groups said the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. appears to have “done nothing to curtail the predatory lending that has exploded on its watch.” They urged the agency’s Democratic board members to take action as Chair Jelena McWilliams, a Republican appointee, prepared to step down.

Eight out of 10 community bankers said in a new survey that the installment loan product appeals to them far less than it does to many fintechs and larger banks.

Rohit Chopra, the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, has cautioned banks, credit unions and fintechs about fair-lending violations that may stem from reliance on artificial intelligence. His comments threaten to discourage financial firms from using the technology to crunch nontraditional data about borrowers, experts say.

Loans to car sellers plummeted earlier in the pandemic due to chip shortages that hampered vehicle production. But supply improvements since last fall have fueled the start of a rebound.

The merger of FVCBankcorp and Blue Ridge Bankshares, which has faced criticism from student borrower advocates, would have created a $5 billion-asset bank. The deal was delayed last year after the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency raised concerns.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has opened an inquiry into whether the largest issuers are engaging in unfair or anti-competitive practices. JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup and the rest of the top eight control 70% of the $1 trillion credit card market.

The deal is the latest example of a mainstream bank buying a point-of-sale lender focused on financing home improvement projects.

Customers are ramping up borrowing just as interest rates are poised to rise. That combination “sets us up nicely for 2022,” says CEO Brian Moynihan.

Under an agreement with 40 state attorneys general, the student lender and servicer agreed to cancel debt for over 66,000 borrowers and pay restitution to another 350,000 borrowers placed in certain types of forbearance.

OneUnited's new installment-loan product is meant to break customers out of a cycle of debt. It will compete with similar offerings from heavyweights like Wells Fargo, Bank of America and Huntington.

The CFPB sued three executives of a Colorado debt collection firm for allegedly selling debts to third-party collectors who threatened consumers with arrest, jail or lawsuits in order to get paid.

The consumer agency’s latest data analysis takes issue with how Equifax, Experian and TransUnion have dealt with a deluge of grievances. One analyst called it a “starting point” for stricter regulations and enforcement actions.

The credit bureaus plan to add repayment data for installment loans, a move that can inform credit decisions and help answer regulators' questions about how such borrowing affects consumers' financial health.

Yan Zhao, President of NYDIG as she exploreshow Bitcoin is experiencing wider adoption in the traditional finance world, and why that is.