Credit

A handful of banks concentrated in the Southeast U.S. are facing elevated charge-offs amid the liquidation of Mountain Express Oil. First Horizon Corp., which led a syndicated loan of more than $200 million to the bankrupt company, expects to take a $70 million hit.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency also is offering more opportunities for public dialogue as stakeholders debate how fast the process should move forward.

Many of the fees that the agency derides as unnecessary are funds owed to medical practices, homebuilders and educational institutions.

Many depositors have "shifted their funds into higher-interest-bearing accounts, increasing banks' funding costs," S&P wrote in a note summarizing the moves.

The decision to allow lenders to review only two credit reports for mortgage applicants will harm homebuyers with less than perfect credit.

U.S. financial services firms should be paying close attention to the innovative Pix Credit system that is displacing consumer credit cards in Brazil.

Cullen/Frost, Columbia, Synovus, Valley National and Associated all have relatively large exposures to the office sector, which has been hurt by the popularity of remote work. Their executives point to factors that offer protection, including the geographic composition of their portfolios and the types of buildings that serve as collateral.

Trucking companies saw a boom during COVID as homebound consumers spent big on goods that needed to be shipped. Now comes the bust, with some firms going bankrupt or struggling to pay back their loans.

Pride month is the perfect time to take a hard look at the discrimination that LGBTQ people face in the financial services industry, particularly when it comes to obtaining credit.

The credit card company believes that its Prism subsidiary will better serve other financial services companies as an independent firm.

Letting consumers share their VantageScore data with crypto lenders is expected to help them get a better deal on crypto loans. 

The San Francisco bank identified "signs of weakness" and increased its loan loss reserves substantially. Small and midsize banks have significantly larger exposures than Wells does to the office segment, which has been hit by changing work habits.

Lenders are bracing for more companies to fall behind on their loan payments. That could create more opportunities for banks to dispose of these nonperforming credits through an Article 9 sale.

Apple began rolling out its first buy now/pay later service after a lengthy delay, entering a field currently dominated by Affirm, Klarna and others.

Banks with strong underwriting and stress testing should be well positioned to survive the credit and liquidity issues that may come while being able to continue to serve customers.

A reasonable approach to comprehensive credit risk management can protect banks against the impact of a recession while ensuring the industry doesn't contribute to any potential economic volatility.

No one company can solve this credit scoring problem. Banks, fintechs and innovative startups must come together in partnership to share information and change the existing system.