Underbanked

After the National Credit Union Administration asked for comments on proposed revisions and expansions to its Payday Alternative Loan program, credit unions offered their suggestions for how to fix it.

Helping the underserved, especially abroad, can help banks retain top workers and boost profits.

Forty credit unions participated in the study, which led to nearly $85 million in loans over the course of 18 months.

Allowing alternative data such as rent and utility payments has bipartisan support, but some say it could create more problems than it solves.

Whether you're lounging on the beach sipping mojitos, hiking the Smoky Mountains, or, like many of us, taking a breather from household chores on your staycation, you still need an escape from time to time.

Consumer advocates are urging local governments and courts to consider a person’s ability to pay before assessing fines and fees for such infractions as unpaid traffic tickets. Such changes could help low-income households avoid bankruptcy — and perhaps even make them more bankable.

Credit unions can apply for their share of approximately $2 million in Community Development Revolving Loan Fund grants between July 1 and Aug. 18.

Startups such as BREAUX Capital are trying to reach consumers historically underserved and underrepresented in financial services.

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.

MyBucks plans to give away entry-level smartphones, loaded with the company's financial technology, to encourage mobile payments, mobile banking and broader access to digital services in Africa, where financial innovation often moves quickly.

Mary Jackson, a former executive at Cash America International, succeeds Lisa McGreevy at the helm of the Arlington, Va.-based trade group.

The bank’s joint initiative with CFSI awards capital to firms trying to address issues that the startup teams personally experienced.

The Hudson, N.Y.-based credit union hopes a community charter will better enable it to serve the high population of unbanked consumers in the region.

A chunk of alternative loan customers are perfectly creditworthy, a report from the credit bureau shows.

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."

Call it mutual respect. Bankers from mutually owned British building societies and similarly structured U.S. thrifts recently gathered in New England to address common challenges and share ideas about staying relevant at a time of rapid change in financial services. Here are the takeaways from their meetings.

A bill to allow the USPS to offer financial products would be bad for consumers, taxpayers and the banking industry.

During a keynote address at PSCU's 2018 Member Forum, PayPal CEO Dan Schulman urged the credit union audience to rethink old assumptions.

Whether you like the idea or hate it, expect to hear a lot more about postal banking over the next two and a half years.

Tala plans to use the latest round of funding to develop new products for its customers in Kenya, Tanzania, the Philippines, India and Mexico.