Small-dollar lending

The state follows Colorado’s lead in adopting reforms pushed by the Pew Charitable Trusts.

The creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was widely expected to centralize regulation of payday and other high-cost loans in Washington. It hasn’t worked out that way.

The bureau determined that Triton Management Group had unfairly charged Mississippi consumers excess interest in violation of state law.

Paul Watkins served as chief counsel for the Arizona AG's 150-person civil litigation division and also headed up the office's fintech initiatives.

The Senate bill, designed to close a loophole in the state's interest rate cap and was closley monitored by the Ohio Credit Union League, must still be reconciled with a similar measure that was passed by the Ohio House of Representatives.

The Senate bill, designed to close a loophole in the state's interest rate cap, must still be reconciled with a similar measure that was passed by the Ohio House of Representatives.

A decades-old Fed charter could help banks develop new cooperatives to combat economic inequality.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s bulletin is seen as just one piece of the regulatory puzzle to coax banks into installment lending.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s bulletin is seen as just one piece of the regulatory puzzle to coax banks into installment lending.

The trend may be partly attributable to a strong economy. Growth in high-cost installment lending could also be a factor.

Fair Financial, a digital banking platform developed by a Twin Cities nonprofit in partnership with a local bank, launched a pilot program this week. By 2020, it plans to serve 5,000 customers across the country.

Despite recent encouragement from the OCC, banks still struggle to make a profit on short-term loans.

Just two months ago, Comptroller Joseph Otting seemed to signal that the OCC might be open to letting national banks rent their charters to payday lenders. Now he is clarifying that it won’t happen.

An OCC initiative to get more banks to make short-term loans that rival those of payday lenders isn't enough of an enticement.

While industry officials welcomed a bulletin from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency encouraging banks to develop alternatives to payday loans, they are making no commitments to offer such products.

The agency's bulletin opens the door to banks' making more short-term loans to borrowers with lower credit scores — with few parameters beyond "sound underwriting."

Regulators should revise existing rules to encourage banks to offer short-term loans to customers who run into financial emergencies.

The heads of Mastercard and Santander outlined the concrete steps their firms are taking to bring unbanked consumers into the financial system.

The congressional resolution to overturn the payday regulation comes as acting CFPB Director Mick Mulvaney has already said the agency will reconsider the rule internally.

The new law, which is modeled on a similar effort in the United Kingdom, aims to lure financial firms to the desert. It has drawn support from business organizations but opposition from consumer groups — a dynamic that is likely to be replayed in other states.