A core issue in the upcoming fight over late fees involves what data is being collected on card issuers' costs and losses associated with late payments.

A plan released Wednesday by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was more aggressive than anticipated, leading to share price declines at Synchrony Financial, Capital One and Bread Financial. "This skews toward the worst-case scenario," one analyst wrote.

The company told many customers they were "pre-approved" for credit card products they did not actually qualify to get. Proceeds from the fine will compensate those consumers, the Federal Trade Commission says.

Credit cards with rewards are rewarding only for those who know how to profit from the system, according to a paper released by the Federal Reserve.

Most borrowers cannot understand the information that TILA requires lenders to provide, raising questions about their utility in consumer protection.

More U.S. consumers are relying on their credit cards each month — and many are doing so without knowing the interest rates they're paying.

Credit card interest rates are expected to reach a four-decade high this year, a positive for lenders poised to benefit from the increased income while painful for consumers facing escalated borrowing costs.

Credit cards offered by banks including Wells Fargo and Synchrony Financial intended to cover expensive health care services may be causing unnecessary financial pain for consumers, said a group of U.S. senators, who cited potentially deceptive promotions.

The measure would reduce access to credit among junior service members, opening the door to payday lenders.

The credit reporting firm said credit card and personal-loan delinquencies are likely to rise in 2023 to the highest in a dozen years, with lenders cutting back on originations as a potential recession looms.

U.S. consumers are more likely to apply for a credit card, and less likely to get rejected, than they were last year, according to a New York Fed survey. The card industry is growing even as the mortgage and auto lending sectors show signs of retrenchment.

Younger borrowers and those with lower incomes added the most to their card balances in the third quarter, according to a New York Fed report. Delinquency levels are also on the rise, a sign that more consumers are struggling to pay off higher debt loads.

Small-business owners need all the savings they can get, but the proposed legislation will ultimately cost consumers and entrepreneurs.

U.S. credit card balances surged to a record in the third quarter as banks bet that consumers with less-than-stellar credit will be able to handle more debt. 

The Federal Reserve's latest rate hike will cost Americans with outstanding credit card debt more than $5 billion in additional interest over the next 12 months, according to an estimate from the personal-finance site WalletHub.

Canadian merchants are now allowed to add a fee for Mastercard and Visa credit card transactions. But early indications suggest few will do so, fearing consumer backlash.