On The Web

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Providers

American Consumers Shun Plastic but Borrow More for Homes and Cars, Fed Report Shows

November 18 2020

• in
• Lenders

“Americans continue to shy away from adding onto their credit cards even as they borrow more to buy houses and cars, according to a new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Household debt overall rose by $87 billion, or 0.6%, to $14.35 trillion in the third quarter compared with the second quarter, the […]

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Providers

Experian leverages Open Banking to factor Spotify and Netflix subscriptions into credit scores

November 10 2020

• in
• Lenders
• Open banking

“The world’s biggest credit ratings agency is utilising Open Banking to launch a service which will factor in Netflix, Amazon and Spotify subscription payments and other bills to improve people’s credit scores. Experian is importing the service from the US to the UK and claims it will increase the credit scores of millions, helping them […]

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Deals

Regional lender First Citizens to buy CIT in $2.2 billion deal

October 19 2020

• in
• Banks
• Lenders

“First Citizens BancShares Inc FCNCA.O said on Friday it would buy peer CIT Group Inc CIT.N in a deal valued at $2.2 billion, creating a bigger regional player in the United States at a time when banks are grappling with low interest rates…The deal, which is expected to close in the first half of 2021, […]

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Providers

Coronavirus Tanked the Economy. Then Credit Scores Went Up.

October 19 2020

• in
• Lenders

“Millions of Americans lost their jobs and skipped debt payments this year. You wouldn’t know it looking at consumer credit scores. While the coronavirus was pummeling the U.S. economy, Americans’ credit scores—a metric used in nearly every consumer-lending decision—were rising. The average FICO credit score stood at 711 in July, up from 708 in April […]

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Providers

U.S. Consumer Borrowing Falls on Smaller Credit-Card Balances

October 8 2020

• in
• Lenders

“U.S. consumer borrowing unexpectedly fell in August as credit-card balances declined for a sixth consecutive month with the coronavirus pandemic continuing to limit some purchases amid elevated unemployment. Total credit decreased $7.2 billion from the prior month after an upwardly revised $14.7 billion July gain, Federal Reserve figures showed Wednesday. The median estimate in a […]

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Providers

PPP Scammers Made Fintech Companies Their Lenders of Choice

October 7 2020

• in
• Lenders
• Loan fraud

“Financial technology companies handled 75% of the approved PPP loans that have been connected to fraud by the U.S. Department of Justice, a Bloomberg analysis of more than 100 loans at the center of the cases shows. The fintech companies arranged just 15% of PPP loans overall. They include Kabbage and BlueVine Capital, as well […]

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Providers

General Motors’ Credit Card, Brought to You by Goldman Sachs

October 2 2020

• in
• Cards
• Lenders

“Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is buying General Motors Co. ’s credit-card business for about $2.5 billion, a deal that furthers the Wall Street giant’s push into Main Street lending. Goldman Sachs, a newcomer to the credit-card space, won the bidding over Barclays PLC, people familiar with the matter said, handing the Wall Street firm more […]

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Providers

The U.S. Economy Was Laden With Debt Before Covid. That’s Bad News for a Recovery.

October 1 2020

• in
• Lenders

“The coronavirus brought an end to the longest economic expansion in U.S. history. That wasn’t the only problem. When the U.S. barreled into the deep downturn that followed, it was laden with debt. Why does this matter? Economies carrying a lot of debt generally have weaker recoveries. Businesses and consumers focus on cutting their liabilities […]

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Providers

U.S. to Start Forgiving PPP Loans After Borrowers Complained

September 30 2020

• in
• Lenders

“The Treasury Department said Tuesday it would begin forgiving loans granted to small-business owners under the Paycheck Protection Program, following banks’ and borrowers’ complaints that the process had been bogged down. The government expects to approve and pay forgiveness requests by late this week or early next, a Treasury spokesperson said. The applications are generally […]

On The Wires

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Global

Venio Launches Operations in Mexico in Support of Its International Expansion

October 13 2020

• in
• Lenders
• Mexico

“Venio, the mobile application providing “nano-credit” facilities to unbanked consumers in emerging markets accessed via a smartphone, today announces its launch in Mexico. Venio Aplicaciones de Mexico, the Company’s Mexican business arm, has been established to support Venio’s expansion across the high growth emerging market. Venio’s international rollout has been expedited on the back of […]