Coronavirus

With the COVID-19 pandemic creating unprecedented challenges for small businesses, American Express has increasingly targeted its investments in that niche.

Small and midsize merchants in North America continue to struggle with the effects of COVID-19 on their bottom lines, but those who have developed an online presence and made changes to in-store payments have found the process to be a vital step.

When both origination and forbearance demand spiked in the early weeks of COVID-19, quick thinking lenders were able to leverage their expertise and tech stacks to respond quickly.

The Cincinnati company, one of just a handful of lenders to reduce its cushion against bad credits in the third quarter, was grilled by analysts who suggested it was being too optimistic about the long-term effects of the pandemic recession.

Discover Financial Services shares surged after the company said spending on its cards improved in September, the first increase during the pandemic.

Discover Financial Services shares surged after the company said spending on its cards improved in September, the first increase during the pandemic.

Banks, lenders, and fintechs have been on a path toward digitizing the mortgage process from end-to-end — long before the term coronavirus entered our daily lexicon. How has the pandemic affected progress?

For the 44.6 million households who rent, coming into the crisis almost 27% were already paying half or more of their monthly income on housing. That meant they had litte ability to save for an emergency, let alone a pandemic that would cause record job losses.

While some institutions have held off on staffing up for new projects, many mission-critical positions at the executive level are still being filled. It may take until well into 2021 before normal patterns return.

The U.S. economy continued to grow across the country as it recovered from the coronavirus pandemic, but the picture was uneven, according to a new report from the Federal Reserve.

Banks have managed to steer around trouble spots in energy, hotel and mall-related credits. But fears of further deterioration, an eviction wave or more job losses are keeping lenders circumspect.

The credit union regulator has no immediate plans to bring staff and examiners back into the office, but Chairman Rodney Hood said staying remote would remain an option for all staff members during Phase 1 of any return.

Agility Bank, one of two women-led groups seeking charters, is looking to open next spring.

Weak loan demand, persistently low yields and the continued struggles of sectors such as hospitality and retail are among the myriad lending challenges facing small regional banks.

The Dallas bank has begun encouraging larger borrowers to seek forgiveness of Paycheck Protection Program loans first as it holds out for the government to streamline the process for loans below $150,000.

Daniel Wolfe, Editor-in-Chief of PaymentsSource, talks with Jay Klauminzer, CEO of Raise, to talk about how the company adapted to abrupt, long-term change in consumer payments.

Online fraud typically spikes when holiday shopping begins in November, but so-called friendly fraud poses another big threat this year with the pandemic pushing more consumers — and inexperienced merchants — to online sales channels.

Online fraud typically spikes when holiday shopping begins in November, but so-called friendly fraud poses another big threat this year with the pandemic pushing more consumers — and inexperienced merchants — to online sales channels.

The auto lender says consumers’ skittishness about flying and using public transit during the pandemic has fueled a surge in demand for new and used cars. But executives remain wary of high unemployment and the potential for a rise in loan defaults.

Amid the disruption of the coronavirus pandemic, many companies are taking a chance on innovative new technologies to keep their customers engaged.