Attorney General James Leads 25 State Attorneys General In Fighting Against Debit Card Overdraft Fees

NEW YORK – Attorney General Letitia James today led a coalition of 25 State Attorneys General opposing any effort by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to roll back or limit its Overdraft Rule. The rule, currently in place, permits banks to charge fees to consumers for overdraft services on ATM and one-time debit transactions only after consumers have been provided with important information about those services and fees in a model notice, and onlyafter those consumers have made the affirmative choice to opt in to such services.

Consumer bankers urge lawmakers to pass plain-language loan disclosures

The Consumer Bankers Association (CBA) is urging lawmakers to support the Student Loan Disclosure Modernization Act, which would require federal student loans to carry plain-language disclosures on the true cost of the loan.
In a letter to the bill’s sponsors, Sens. Tim Scott (R-SC) and Joe Manchin (D-WV), CBA officials point out that private student loans offered by banks already have these disclosures. These disclosures on private loans contribute to a 98 percent repayment rate of private student loans.

REGISTER BY JULY 19 TO GET THE DISCOUNT RATE FOR THE DEBT CONNECTION SYMPOSIUM AND EXPO 2019 IN LAS VEGAS!

Debt Connection Symposium and Expo 2019 will be held on September 10-12, 2019 at the Red Rock Hotel in Las Vegas, NV.  There is an early bird rate of $1,295 that will end on July 19, 2019, on July 20, 2019 the rate goes up to $1,395.  Register today to get that early bird rate! 

Registration is open to Industry Professionals, both Operational and Marketing, from Creditors, Debt Sellers, Collection Agencies, Collection Attorneys, Debt Buyers, Scoring & Analytics Vendors, Skip/Locate Vendors, Collection/Recovery Software and Hardware Vendors. This conference represents a solid opportunity for substantive interaction between clients and vendors, and a comfortable setting to discuss new opportunities.   Click here to register today 
https://debtconnectionsymposium.com/registration.html

Have you booked your room at the Red Rock Hotel?  We have insured that all Debt Connection Symposium and Expo 2019 conference attendees get a conference-discounted rate of $190 for a standard room.  So if you do not have your room reserved, please act fast, space is limited, and we expect to sell out.   

Debt Collector Sentenced to 6 Years in Prison for Fraud

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Charles V. Stanley Jr., 65, of Agua Dulce, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez to six years in prison for conspiring to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott announced.   According to court documents, Stanley was the owner and operator of Creditor Specialty Service Inc. (CSS), a debt collection company that operated in California, Oregon, and Nevada. Various companies contracted with CSS to collect debts, including credit unions based in Folsom, Sacramento, and Bakersfield. At Stanley’s direction, CSS employees collected money from debtors but underreported to creditors the amounts CSS actually collected. During the scheme, Stanley caused CSS to file lawsuits or settle with debtors without client authorization. After one credit union terminated its contract with Stanley, he continued to demand and collect money from its debtors, and persisted in this fraudulent conduct even after a court ordered Stanley to cease collecting from the credit union’s debtors.

New report explores the extent of revolving in the U.S. credit card market

 We released a data point which explores patterns of revolving and repayment of credit card accounts in the United States. This data point offers insights on how consumers use their credit cards as a line of credit rather as a payment mechanism, a topic which has not been the subject of extensive prior research.

D-Link Agrees to Make Security Enhancements to Settle FTC Litigation

The FTC has been keeping a close watch on the Internet of Things since the Internet of Things became a thing to watch. That includes law enforcement actions against companies alleged to have sold vulnerable connected devices that put consumers’ sensitive information at risk. Affected devices could even become – in effect – zombies that do the bidding of malicious botnets that threaten the Internet. The settlement of the FTC’s case against D-Link offers a reminder of both the threats that vulnerable IoT and smart home products pose to consumers and the practices that prudent IoT companies routinely implement.

Attorney General James Announces $5.8 Million Multistate Settlement With Lexisnexis

NEW YORK – Attorney General Letitia James today announced a multistate settlement with LexisNexis Risk Solutions and several of its affiliates (LexisNexis) for defrauding state law enforcement agencies out of more than $2.8 million. LexisNexis deliberately failed to pay those agencies agreed-upon fees — $900,000 in New York alone — for the resale of car crash reports. New York’s share of the settlement is approximately $1.7 million, or 30 percent of the total $5.8 million multistate settlement.

CFPB is taking a fresh look at bank overdraft fee rule

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau just wrapped up a public comment period on a rule that extends some protections to consumers who overdraw their checking accounts. The CFPB must examine the rule under a federal law that requires agencies to review rules that might affect small businesses. Before the Federal Reserve Board set the 2009 overdraft rule, banks could automatically enroll people in overdraft protection and slap them with a fee — typically around $35 per transaction. With the rule in place, people can choose to have banks reject purchases at the point of sale instead to avoid those fees.

FTC and Partners Sponsor “Back-to-Basics” Advertising and Data Security Workshop in Atlanta

The Federal Trade Commission and its regional partners will hold a public workshop in Atlanta on Thursday, August 15, 2019, on truth-in-advertising basics and data security compliance.  Designed for business owners, advertising and marketing executives, and attorneys, Green Lights & Red Flags: FTC Rules of the Road for Business features a roster of experts discussing established consumer protection and antitrust principles, new developments in the law, and their practical application in today’s marketplace. FTC Commissioner Rohit Chopra and Georgia Attorney General Christopher M. Carr will deliver remarks.

Betsy DeVos cancels Obama-era regulation aimed at holding for-profit schools accountable

At a recent financial aid conference, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said that every school should help its students graduate with high-quality career prospects and minimal debt.   Students should be equipped, DeVos added, with information that allows them to be responsible consumers. “They need to have the best possible tools, data, advice and support,” DeVos said, at the Georgia World Congress Center in late November.

Georgia court agency hacked in ransom attack

Hackers have infected computers at a Georgia courts agency, demanding a ransom payment and causing officials to shut down court websites.  The Administrative Office of the Courts was offline Monday as the state government tried to contain the hack. The agency maintains court documents, provides computer applications to some local courts and publishes guidance on court operations.  All georgiacourts.gov websites were inaccessible. It’s unclear how many computers and court services were affected.

Supreme Court Illuminates Enforceability of Arbitration Agreements

As the centennial of the Federal Arbitration Act (the FAA), 9 U.S.C. §1, et seq. approaches, the efficacy of that statutory regime has never been stronger. Reinforced by a plenitude of Supreme Court decisions, some of them quite recent, this federal law assuring the enforceability of agreements to arbitrate remains indefatigable. Indeed, in these very pages only a year ago, we had occasion to expound upon the aptly named Epic Systems v. Lewis, 584 U.S. __ (2018), at the time the high court’s latest confirmation that arbitral accords shallbe upheld by the federal courts. See Michael A. Sabino and Anthony M. Sabino, “‘Epic’ Decision by Supreme Court Orders Arbitration, Prohibits Class Action,” 259 N.Y.L.J. at p. 4, cl. 4 (June 6, 2018); see also New Prime v. Oliveira, 586 U.S. ___, ___ slip op. at 1 (No. 17-340) (Jan. 15, 2019) (Gorsuch, J.) (“The Federal Arbitration Act requires courts to enforce private arbitration agreements”).

Transworld Systems Inc. Acquires Altisource Portfolio Solutions S.A.’s Financial Services Business

LAKE FOREST, Ill., July 1, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Transworld Systems Inc. ("TSI" or the "Company") – the leading analytics-driven provider of accounts receivable management, healthcare revenue cycle and loan servicing solutions – announced today it has completed its purchase of the Altisource Financial Services business – including Nationwide Credit, Inc. (NCI) – from Altisource Portfolio Solutions S.A.

Seila Law Asks U.S. Supreme Court to Review Ninth Circuit Ruling that CFPB’s structure is Constitutional

Seila Law has filed a petition for a writ of certiorari with the U.S. Supreme Court seeking review of the Ninth Circuit’s ruling that the CFPB’s single-director-removable-only-for-cause structure is constitutional. The petition follows the entry of an order by the Ninth Circuit granting Seila Law’s motion for a stay of the Ninth Circuit’s mandate in the case pending resolution of the petition by the Supreme Court. There is currently no circuit split regarding the CFPB’s constitutionality, with both the Ninth Circuit and the en banc D.C. Circuit in PHH having ruled that the CFPB’s structure is constitutional. Nevertheless, Seila Law argues that “further percolation” would not benefit the Supreme Court in resolving the question of the CFPB’s constitutionality. In support, Seila Law references the Ninth Circuit’s comment in its decision that “the majority, concurring, and dissenting opinions from the en banc D.C. Circuit in PHH ‘thoroughly canvassed’ the arguments involved in the constitutionality debate.” Seila Law contends that, in light of these “extensive” opinions, “[a]dditional opinions from other courts of appeals will add little to this Court’s consideration of the issue.”

Banks spend $1 trillion on digital, but few reap the rewards

While global banks have been pouring money into information technology — to the tune of $1 trillion over three years — only a handful appear to be fully committed to a digital transformation and are therefore reaping the benefits, according to an Accenture study. Just 19 of the 161 largest retail and commercial banks that the consulting firm examined have been focusing enough on digital strategies to "make the shift to a different sort of bank," Accenture said in the report, released Thursday. And those that did were rewarded for their efforts, the firm said.

Court rules student loan companies are subject to state consumer laws, contrary to Trump administration’s stance

A federal appeals court ruling Thursday could stymie the Education Department’s efforts to shield from state regulation companies that manage the department’s $1.5 trillion portfolio of student loans.   The 24-page opinion from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit challenges a decision in October barring Nicole Nelson from suing Great Lakes Educational Loan Services, the company servicing her federal student loans, for allegedly violating Illinois’ consumer fraud laws. Nelson alleges Great Lakes touted its expertise as a student loan adviser, yet steered her into an expensive repayment option.

NAFCU counters ABA inquiry with NCUA letter

Late last week, the American Bankers Association's (ABA) sent a letter to the NCUA requesting an assessment of credit unions and their commitment to underserved populations. NAFCU's EVP of Government Affairs and General Counsel Carrie Hunt hit back immediately, responding with a letter, also to the NCUA, that NAFCU supports the agency remaining focused on priorities that will help the credit union industry.

PayThink Before they regulate AI, Congress needs to define it

The emerging debate on machine learning and artificial intelligence can sometimes sound like a science fiction externality, destined to rise in complexity until it fights humans for supremacy.  But AI is a tool employed every day, across every industry: streamlining our shopping, banking and entertainment experiences. These data tools give computers some logical task that until recently, had to be done by humans. AI is not a threat. It empowers humans.  The Senate Banking Committee recently met to hear concerns about “data brokers and the impact on financial data privacy, credit, insurance, employment and housing,” where the impact of machine learning and AI was prominently featured. A number of senators have raised questions about the use of AI in the past but there was a noticeable uptick in concern at the recent hearing.

Who’s using installment loans at the point of sale?

Installment lending, whether it’s online or at the physical point of sale, is a market sector that has been experiencing a global boom in consumer demand for the last several years. Installment loans are different than credit cards since they are not open lines of credit and are typically used for a specific purchase. This can help consumers overcome the stigma of borrowing in certain markets such as Germany, where cash and bank transfers tend to dominate the payments landscape; or in the U.S., where millennials fear amassing unwanted debt.

CFPB Fair Lending Report 2018

We are committed to ensuring fair, equitable, and nondiscriminatory access to credit for both individuals and communities. This report describes our fair lending activities in innovation, outreach, prioritization, guidance and rulemaking, supervision, and enforcement for calendar year 2018.

Why employee negligence is the main factor in data breaches

Cybersecurity is big business these days. Last year, cybercriminals exposed 2.8 billion consumer data records in 342 breaches, costing U.S. organizations more than $650 billion. Attacks on the nation’s financial services industry cost more than $6.2 billion in the first quarter of 2019 alone, up from just $8 million in the same period last year. In 2018, personally identifiable information, such as date of birth and/or Social Security Numbers, accounted for 97% of data breaches, and healthcare was the most affected sector, falling victim to almost half of all breaches. While investments in information security products and services have been steadily rising, with $114 billion invested last year alone, the cybercriminals aren’t slowing down.  A new state-of-the-industry report found that 47% of business leaders admitted that human error, such as the accidental loss of a device or a document, had caused a data breach at their organization.

FTC says credit repair company en-CROA-ched on consumer rights

The first rule of credit repair is that no credit repair company can remove accurate and timely negative information from someone’s credit report. For credit repair companies that would claim otherwise, there’s CROA – the Credit Repair Organizations Act. It makes it illegal for credit repair companies to lie about what they can do to clear up a clouded credit report, or charge upfront fees before they do the job they promised to do.

Here’s why America’s $1.5 trillion student-loan crisis has spiralled out of control

With the growth in student loans continuing to soar, politicians and borrowers struggling with an issue that’s become both a financial and political problem.   Presidential candidates are proposing to cancel student debt and make public college free, state legislators are cracking down on student-loan companies and, recently, government agencies have offered another approach — teaching students and borrowers more about finances.

Senate passes NDAA; NAFCU remains ‘staunchly opposed’ to nominal lease provision

The Senate Thursday passed its version of the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which includes a NAFCU-opposed provision that could allow big banks to be treated the same as a military installation's local not-for-profit defense credit union. NAFCU will maintain its advocacy efforts to prevent this provision from being included in any final bill passed by both chambers.

BOOK YOUR ROOM TODAY AT THE RED ROCK HOTEL FOR THE DEBT CONNECTION SYMPOSIUM AND EXPO 2019 CONFERENCE

Have you booked your room at the Red Rock Hotel?   We have insured that all Debt Connection Symposium and Expo 2019 conference attendees get a conference-discounted rate of $190 for a standard room.  So if you do not have your room reserved, please act fast, space is limited, and we expect to sell out.   Debt Connection Symposium and Expo 2019 will be held on September 10-12, 2019 at the Red Rock Hotel in Las Vegas, NV.   to book your room today, please click "Here" to guarantee the conference standard room rate.  

A New ‘Fixer Upper’ Mortgage Program Suggests Shifts In Lending Landscape

Mortgages may be on the pivot again. They have made it through a period of tight lending conditions all the way to our current phase where lenders have had to come up with dozens of iterations of low downpayment programs. While the low downpayment trend hasn't ebbed completely, it may be shifting towards a lending landscape that provides even more cash to buyers—particularly first-time buyers and those who want to age in place.  Freddie Mac announced last week a new CHOICERenovationproduct that joins the other home renovation mortgage options out there which encourage buyers to purchase old housing stock.

OCC Reports Improvement in Mortgage Performance

WASHINGTON —The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) reported a slight improvement in the performance of first-lien mortgages in the federal banking system during the first quarter of 2019.   The OCC Mortgage Metrics Report, First Quarter 2019 showed 96.2 percent of mortgages included in the report were current and performing at the end of the quarter, compared to 95.6 percent a year earlier.

CFPB Files Amicus Brief in Support of Plaintiff in Fourth Circuit FDCPA case

The CFPB has filed an amicus brief in Bender v. Elmore & Throop, P.C., an appeal before the Fourth Circuit involving the application of the FDCPA’s one-year statute of limitations.  The brief supports the position of the plaintiff-appellant that the one-year period runs separately for each discrete FDCPA violation.  It represents the first CFPB amicus brief filed under Director Kraninger’s leadership.

Fearful of another recession, Americans are losing sleep over their finances

Some Americans are feeling uneasy. Consumer confidence fell to a two-year low in June, the Conference Board announced this week. It fell to 121.5 this month from a 131.3 in May. That’s the lowest level since September 2017.  “The escalation in trade and tariff tensions earlier this month appears to have shaken consumers’ confidence,” Lynn Franco, senior director at the Conference Board, said in a statement. Continued uncertainty could “diminish” people’s confidence in the economic expansion, she added.

CFPB Extends Comment Period For ANPR on HMDA Data Points

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) announced today that it is extending the comment period on its Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) relating to the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA). The extension will give interested parties an opportunity to review the Bureau’s annual overview of residential mortgage lending based on the HMDA data financial institutions collected in 2018, as requested by a variety of stakeholders. In late summer, the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council will release the national loan level dataset and the Bureau will release an overview of that dataset.

KeyBank launches Financial Wellness Review

KeyBank is launching Financial Wellness Review, a new tool aimed at helping customers better understand and address their financial pictures.  The review combines advanced analytics with personalised expertise giving clients deeper insight into their financial behaviours and identifies real solutions.   “We know that each person’s financial wellness journey is unique. Behaviours vary, and needs differ. Personalised banking experiences are truly valuable,” says Dennis Devine, President of Key’s Consumer Bank.

Congress moves to make IRS more customer-friendly by passing Taxpayer First Act

Congress recently took a stab at revamping the Internal Revenue Service to improve customer service and mend its tattered reputation so that deciding between dealing with the agency and having one’s teeth drilled isn’t such a difficult choice.  Key provisions in the Taxpayer First Act —  passed by the House and Senate earlier this month — range from improvements in technology systems and the strengthening of taxpayer rights, to creation of an independent office of appeals and expansion of a program that will let all taxpayers obtain a personal identification number to better guard against tax refund fraud.

Artificial Intelligence Makes Boosting ID Theft Protection Critical, House AI Task Force Chair Warns

Artificial intelligence is making improving identity theft protections imperative, House Financial Services Committee AI Task Force Chair Bill Foster warned Wednesday.  The Congressman said AI has become an increasingly popular tool for crooks to swipe assets and sensitive financial information from consumers.  AI is being used to help steal Social Security numbers, credit card numbers and other personal identity factors can be stolen and sold on the dark web, or used by criminals for quick and easy profit gain, Foster explained.

Second Florida city pays giant ransom to ransomware gang in a week

Less than a week after a first Florida city agreed to pay a whopping $600,000 to get their data back from hackers, now, a second city's administration has taken the same path.   On Monday, in an emergency meeting of the city council, the administration of Lake City, a small Florida city with a population of 65,000, voted to pay a ransom demand of 42 bitcoins, worth nearly $500,000.

JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon: Student lending in the U.S. is a ‘disgrace’ and it’s ‘hurting America’

JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon says student lending in the U.S. has been "a disgrace" and it's "hurting America."" style="margin: 0px 0px 1em; color: #26282a; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: #ffffff; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial;">JPMorgan Chase (JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon says student lending in the U.S. has been "a disgrace" and it's "hurting America."  "Is there an issue with student debt? There is, but you’ve got to stop the creation of bad debt," Dimon told Yahoo Finance's Andy Serwer in an exclusive interview at the unveiling of JPMorgan’s new flagship bank branch in Midtown Manhattan.  Dimon added that the government has "irresponsibly" lent more than $1 trillion since taking over in 2010.  “And now they want to forgive it,” he said.

FTC roundup: Actions involving active duty military, credit repair scheme and robocalls

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The past seven days have been quite active at the Federal Trade Commission. The regulator made moves involving credit reporting and active military personnel, took action in connection with an alleged credit repair scheme and worked with and its law enforcement partners for a major crackdown on illegal robocalls. What might be most pressing for auto finance companies is the FTC finalized the rule implementing a 2018 law that requires the nationwide consumer reporting agencies (CRAs) to provide free electronic credit monitoring services for active duty military consumers.

FinTech Stocks Burn Rubber in 2019

There is a relatively new and deep small-cap banking niche to know about - and it is experiencing a solid 2019 stock market rally. At Zacks, we label this 22-company strong banking group as Financial - Consumer Loans. But the classic buzzword floating around here is FinTech. In brief, FinTech is the use of Big Data, and other forms of Artificial Intelligence, to enhance the process of lending to millions of everyday consumers.

95,000 Delawareans impacted in data breach that lasted nearly nine years

The personal data of roughly 95,000 Delawareans may have been compromised in a nine-year security breach at Dominion National, a large vision and dental insurer, Delaware's Department of Insurance said. Dominion National discovered the breach in April, it said on its website....

PSECU Announced as a Forbes Magazine Best-In-State Credit Union for 2019

Yesterday, Forbes Magazine released its list of Best-In-State Credit Unions for 2019, honoring the top 3.3% of credit unions nationwide. PSECU, Pennsylvania’s largest credit union, is proud to announce that it was included as one of just three credit unions on the list for the state. 

$5,871,578 Medical

Capital Asset Management, Inc.

(317) 633-6633

$1,186,177 Medical

Capital Asset Management, Inc.

(317) 633-6633

$3,098,081 Medical

Capital Asset Management, Inc.

(317) 633-6633

$2,435,293 Auto Deficiencies

Capital Asset Management, Inc.

(317) 633-6633

SCB Asset Managment

(425) 616-8523

Stallworth Holding

(615) 946-0129

NACTT 54th Annual Seminar Registration Open

NACTT

ACA International 2019 Annual Convention & Expo

ACA International

Debt Connection Symposium & Expo 2019

Resource Management Services, Inc.

National Creditors Bar Association 2019 Fall Conference

National Creditors Bar Association