LendUp Surpasses $2 Billion in Consumer Loans

LendUp, the company whose goal is to make financial health a reality for all, announced today it has issued over $2 billion in consumer financing through its digital lending platform. Since 2012, LendUp has provided more than 6.5 million loans, with an average loan value of approximately $300. The company continues its commitment to providing more people with greater access to consumer credit and financial services.

US Supreme Court to Weigh in on Personal Jurisdiction and Constitutionality of TCPA Auto-Dialing Ban

Earlier this month, the US Supreme Court agreed to weigh in on two issues with important consequences for business. The first involves the scope of specific personal jurisdiction--i.e., when businesses can be sued outside of their home states for specific controversies. The second concerns the constitutionality of the prohibition in the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) on automated dialing and prerecorded/artificial voices.

Truist seeks more time to reach $1.6B post-merger net savings goal

Truist has pushed back the timeline for its estimated $1.6 billion cost-savings goal, citing systems integrations and branch consolidation delays, CEO Kelly King said during the bank’s first post-merger earnings call Thursday. The bank originally anticipated it would reach the net savings goal in nine quarters. Truist now estimates it will take 12, or until the end of 2022. 

Better Money Habits® Millennial Report – Winter 2020

Our 2020 Better Money Habits Millennial Report explored the money mindset of today’s young adults (ages 24-41), revealing their financial priorities, trade-offs and stressors and how they’re balancing it all along the way. We found that nearly one in four millennials that are saving have at least $100,000, up from 16 percent in 2018 and 8 percent in 2015. Despite this good news, millennials still feel behind financially compared to peers and are juggling substantial debt levels with near and long-term financial priorities.

US farmers are filing for bankruptcy at the highest rate since 2011

An increasing number of American farmers struggled to make ends meet in 2019 as trade tensions added to a range of growing challenges in the sector, from severe weather to low commodity prices.    There were 595 Chapter 12 farm bankruptcies filed last year, according to court filings reviewed by the American Farm Bureau, a 20% increase from 2018. That was the highest level since 2011 when the nation was still in recovery following the Great Recession.

Senators To CFPB: Why Are You Still Failing To Protect Student Loan Borrowers?

It has been more than two years since the nation's most powerful financial watchdog examined the companies that manage about $1.5 trillion of federal student loans owed by 43 million borrowers. On Thursday, two members of the Senate Banking Committee said they're exasperated with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's continuing failure to pursue mounting problems with the way student loans are handled. "You and your staff have provided a variety of excuses and shifting explanations for the Bureau's failure to fulfill this critical oversight role," Democratic Sens. Sherrod Brown and Robert Menendez wrote in a letter, obtained by NPR, to CFPB Director Kathleen Kraninger. 

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Announces Action Against Citizens Bank, N.A.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) filed suit against Citizens Bank, N.A. (Citizens), a national banking association headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island. The Bureau’s complaint alleges violations of the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and TILA’s implementing Regulation Z, including violations of amendments to TILA contained in the Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA) and the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act (CARD Act). 

TWO MORE ROUNDTABLES ANNOUNCED FOR COLLECTION AND RECOVERY SOLUTIONS 2020 IN LAS VEGAS, NV

Nicholas Prata of Marlette Funding  and “Dan Picard of Hanscom Federal Credit Union, will each be moderating roundtables at  the Collection and Recovery Solutions 2020 conference at the Four Seasons Hotel, Las Vegas May 6 - 8, 2020.

Collection and Recovery Solutions is an invitation-only event for senior-level collection and recovery professionals, providing educational opportunities regarding the Challenges and Opportunities in a Changing World. For more information about other roundtable speakers please go to www.crs2020.com or call 562-906-1101.

House Passes Pressley Bill to Reform Broken Credit Reporting System

Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 3621, the Comprehensive Credit Reporting Enhancement, Disclosure, Innovation, and Transparency Act of 2020 (“Comprehensive CREDIT Act”), legislation sponsored by Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), by a vote of 221 to 189.  
H.R. 3621 would overhaul the credit reporting system by empowering consumers with more control of their data and requiring consumer reporting agencies (CRAs) like Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian, to better ensure that the information on consumer credit reports is accurate and complete.

NAFCU to FCC: Stop service providers’ aggressive call blocking

NAFCU reiterated concerns about the negative effects of current rules in place to combat illegal robocalls in a letter to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) sent yesterday in response to a notice and request for comment about the implementation and effectiveness of call blocking measures.

Null and VoIP: FTC reminds service providers of the letter of the law

We usually wouldn’t suggest you read someone else’s mail, but FTC staff just sent letters to 19 providers of VoIP telephone services and the underlying message about the breadth of liability for consumer protection violations is relevant to other businesses.   In many contexts, VoIP offers substantial benefits to consumers. But when it comes to robocalls and deceptive telemarketing pitches, VoIP can be a fraudster’s best friend. That’s because the technology allows scammers to blast out millions of illegal calls for very little money.

CFPB Announces Additions to Executive Team

Washington, D.C. — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) today announced additions to its executive team. The leadership positions are:

Susan M. Bernard will serve as Assistant Director for Regulations in the Research, Markets and Regulation Division. Before joining the Bureau, she served as the Director of the Office of Regulations and Policy in the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Dr. Bernard earned her doctorate and master’s degrees in public health from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland and J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law in Boston, Massachusetts.

NLEX INTRODUCES NEW TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM FOR POST-SALE ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT

EDWARDSVILLE, IL, January 30, 2020 – National Loan Exchange, Inc. (NLEX) announced today that the firm has teamed up with DebtNext Software to offer an online post-sale management tool exclusively for NLEX clients. This new technology platform enhances NLEX’s post-sale servicing by providing clients with a secure, centralized online portal where they can access and oversee post-sale account activity at their fingertips.  

House passes legislation to overhaul consumer credit reporting

The House on Wednesday passed legislation aimed at overhauling consumer credit reporting and providing additional protections and opportunities to rebuild credit.    The measure, which consisted of a package of six bills, passed along party lines. It includes language calling for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to establish a credit rehabilitation process, bar credit rating agencies from including delinquent or defaulted student loans on credit reports after the borrower makes nine monthly payments on time and require private lenders to offer repayment plans to those facing economic hardship who are looking to rehabilitate their credit scores

DOJ seeks court approval to stop companies from making robocalls

The U.S. Justice Department announced its first-ever enforcement actions against telecommunications operators for facilitating robocalls, including two groups “originating in India, and operating out of residential addresses in New York and Arizona,” said Jody Hunt, Assistant Attorney General for the department’s civil division.

HALF OF CFPB COMPLAINTS IN 2019 ABOUT CREDIT REPORTS AS HOUSE BRINGS REFORMS TO FLOOR

On Wednesday, 29 January, the full U.S. House is expected to vote on a broad credit reporting reform package, HR3621, the Comprehensive CREDIT Act. Meanwhile, a PIRG analysis finds that half of all complaints reported into the CFPB's Public Consumer Complaint Database in 2019 concerned credit reporting. Further, complaints about the Big 3 credit bureaus led complaints from all other companies, with Equifax (#1), TransUnion (#2) and Experian (#3) leading the "Top Ten" most-complained-about firms.

REMITTER USA HIRES ROXANNE BARTLEY AS EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT OF STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS

New York, NY: Remitter announced that well regarded industry veteran Roxanne Bartley has joined their team as Executive Vice President of Strategic Partnerships. Bartley has over twenty five years of experience in the ARM industry, having assisted organizations with all aspects of their sales and marketing strategies. In this new role, Bartley brings her fiercely competitive spirit and tenacity to focus on driving growth and revenue across Remitter’s platform and expanding its clientele. 

LENDIT FINTECH USA 2020 – MAY 13 – 14, 2020 – Save with DC code

LENDIT FINTECH USA 2020 – MAY 13 – 14, 2020

LendIt Fintech USA 2020 returns to NYC as they host the world’s largest fintech networking event. Over 5,000+ fintech innovators, investors, commercial and regional banks, service providers, enterprise tech companies, the media, and government officials will gather for two days of networking, learning and deal-making. Save 15% on your registration with code DC15%

JPMorgan Chase plans to cut hundreds of jobs in consumer division

JPMorgan Chase is planning to slash hundreds of jobs in its consumer unit, according to a report by Bloomberg.   The cuts represent about 1% of the division’s workforce, and employees will be given a chance to apply for other roles in the company, a source said. Affected employees are expected to be notified Feb. 6.   JPMorgan’s consumer unit houses the bank’s deposit, credit-card, home and auto lending businesses and contributes nearly half of the bank’s revenue, Bloomberg reported.

Florida-based lender will pay NC $825,000 to resolve illegal loan claims

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A Florida-based lender will pay $825,000 while resolving a legal complaint that had accused the firm of making illegal small loans in North Carolina.   A Wake County judge agreed to the settlement between Approved Financial Inc. and Attorney General Josh Stein.   He had accused Approved Financial of unlicensed lending, unlawful debt collection, and unfair and deceptive activity.

CRS2020 2 FOR 1 OFFER ENDS FRIDAY

So much to discuss at CRS2020 this year.  There is still time to register for the 2 for 1 offer to creditors at the Collection and Recovery Solutions conference. This special offer ends Friday, January 31, don’t miss out.

We are excited about all the speakers and content this year.  The conference will begin with our expert panel of Adam Mellem of Toyota, Doug St. Peters from Navient and others on the "The Changing Dynamics of Collections & Recovery" Thursday morning and then to the CFPB Update.  We are happy to announce our special guest the Honorable Christopher Jaime, United States Bankruptcy Judge, to discuss the recent decisions affecting the industry and mistakes to avoid in bankruptcy cases.

Growing Up During Recessionary Times Does Not Suppress Gen Z’s Appetite for Credit

Generation Z consumers—those born in or after 1995—are actively seeking credit despite many of them growing up during severe economic recessions in their respective global markets. A new global TransUnion (NYSE: TRU) study revealed this broad desire to engage with lenders, although the prevalence of activity and type of credit they are pursuing differs when comparing established and emerging markets.

Wawa breach update: 30M cards likely compromised

Last month, convenience store chain Wawa announced that more than 850 of its stores had been impacted by malware but did not estimate how many consumers had been affected. According to KrebsonSecurity, experts believe that more than 30 million cards were stolen and are now being sold on an underground site.

Security admins checklist: 10 tasks to perform every year

Security administrators oversee the secured processes in place, safeguarding the day-to-day operations of an organization. While it is easy for users to focus solely on protecting computers and their devices, security admins are tasked with managing the overall landscape--including LAN/WAN, services, the devices used to access those services, and the most unpredictable factor of them all: The end user.

Chattanooga City Council calls for lower interest rates from payday lenders, moves to to outlaw scooters

The Chattanooga City Council swiftly and unanimously approved a resolution Tuesday night, joining Shelby County in a call for the state to lower maximum interest rates on payday loans. In an effort to ease the financial burden on citizens who take out payday loans, often referred to as predatory loans, District 9 Councilwoman Demetrus Coonrod introduced a resolution asking her colleagues to call for the state to lower the maximum allowed interest rates.

Fintech Adoption in North America Lags Global Acceptance

Over the last several years, the awareness and usage of non-traditional financial services has risen exponentially across almost all regions of the world. As fintech firms have matured from small specialized start-ups to include global organizations offering a broad array of financial services, consumers are increasingly trusting these relatively new organizations to hold funds, process transactions, provide credit and offer advice.

Innovation Lessons That Respond to Fintech Challenges

Anyone who has read The Financial Brand articles I write, listened to my Banking Transformed podcast, or have seen me speak at events knows that I believe that the only way for financial executives or the banking industry to move forward is to ‘disrupt themselves’. The term ‘disruptive innovation’, as it relates to business, was first coined by innovation guru Clayton Christensen in a Harvard Business Review article in 1995, followed by his 1997 book, “The Innovator’s Dilemma” and many subsequent works.

Sallie Mae reverses course on personal loan origination

Student loan giant Sallie Mae discontinued new personal loan originations less than two years after beginning to accept them, it said last week during its quarterly earnings call, opting to focus on core strategic priorities.   Separately, the company said it plans to sell off $3 billion in student loans this year and use the proceeds to buy back $600 million of its stock. The buyback should offset the effect of a new accounting standard that Sallie Mae warned would force the company to triple the reserves it sets aside to cover loan losses.

WebRecon Stats for Dec 2019 and Year in Review: How Did Your Favorite Statutes Fare?

Well, 2019 is officially over, and with the end comes no real surprises. Everything was down for the month of December: FDCPA -.3%, TCPA -12.4%, FCRA -6.7% and CFPB complaints -6.6%.   None of that is particularly surprising, but it isn’t all that important in the grand scheme either. Here is something that is more relevant: Full year 2019 numbers appear to have cemented in some long standing trends in consumer litigation filings.

New credit loss accounting standard expected to pummel retail income

Retailers who rely on in-house branded credit cards to fuel sales face a potential revenue hit this year because of a change in accounting standards that affects their bank partners.   Under the current expected credit loss (CECL) standard that went into effect for SEC filers for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019, banks are required to set aside reserves for their entire book of loans based on estimated losses for the full life of those loans.

Growing Student Debt Burden for Parents

A new study adds to growing concerns about a federal program that allows parents to take out loans to help finance their children’s undergraduate education.   Roughly 3.6 million parents had taken out $96 billion in outstanding loans under the federal Parent PLUS program as of late last year, the study from Trellis Research said. Parent PLUS loans now account for about a quarter of total federal lending for undergraduates, a share that grew from 14 percent in 2012-13.

Aiming to rein in student loan industry, Virginia House passes ‘borrowers bill of rights’

Legislation aimed at forcing student loan service companies to be more transparent and forthcoming in their dealings with borrowers cleared the House of Delegates with bipartisan support Monday.   The bill creates a “borrower’s bill of rights” and would subject the student loan industry to rules in line with what are currently in place for banks, credit unions and mortgage lenders, says its patron, Del. Marcus Simon, D-Fairfax.

CTR Refresher: FinCEN Revises CTR Instructions Again

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) recently updated its CTR Electronic Filing Instructions, providing technical corrections and clarifications for financial institutions dealing with complex currency-related situations.   Quick Refresher. As outlined in the FFIEC BSA/AML Examination Manual, credit unions are required to electronically file a Currency Transaction Report (CTR) for each transaction in currency (deposit, withdrawal, exchange, or other payment or transfer) of more than $10,000 by, through, or to the credit union. Currency is defined in the Manual as coin and paper money of the United States or any other country as long as it is customarily accepted as money in the country of issue. Therefore, transactions not involving currency are not subject to CTR reporting requirements.  

Smaller Companies Need to Step Up Their Cyber Security Efforts

Whenever we hear about major cyber security attacks such as data breaches, it’s typically larger enterprises that are the victims. That makes sense, considering those events can potentially impact a lot of people and therefore are more likely to grab headlines and garner attention. But that doesn’t mean small and mid-sized companies (SMBs) are immune to such attacks. In fact, smaller organizations are frequent targets of cyber incidents, and they generally have far fewer resources with which to defend themselves.

Democrats urge Supreme Court to save consumer agency from chopping block

Democrats are rallying around the consumer protection agency Congress created in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis as conservatives urge the Supreme Court to declare the regulator unconstitutional.   The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) could be on the chopping block as it faces a Supreme Court case over whether its unique structure violates the Constitution. Current and former Democratic lawmakers argued in court filings this week that the justices should reject the attacks from conservatives and free market groups against an agency they see as crucial to defending ordinary people from predatory financial firms.

The Supreme Court could upend consumer financial protection as we know it

A case before the Supreme Court has the power to dramatically reshape how the U.S. government polices financial fraud and other misdeeds against consumers — which many experts fear would weaken existing protections and expose the public to more harm. The case, which concerns the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, could ultimately lead to the dissolution of the agency, which lawmakers created in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis and was bestowed with broad powers to issue and enforce consumer protection rules in areas such as banking, student loans, credit reporting, mortgages, payday loans and debt collection.

NEW EXHIBITOR ANNOUNCED AT THE COLLECTION AND RECOVERY SOLUTIONS 2020 IN LAS VEGAS, NV MAY 6-8

Collection and Recovery Solutions 2020 is happy to announce that Williams & Fudge, Inc. will be exhibiting at this year’s conference, May 6-8 in Las Vegas, NV at the Four Seasons Hotel Las Vegas.  Be sure to visit them in booth 41 in the Expo Hall.

For more information about the Collections and Recovery Solutions conference please visit us at http://www.collectionrecoverysolutions.com/

LIVEVOX ANNOUNCES ACQUISITION OF SPEECHIQ

SAN FRANCISCO, CA —  January 27, 2020 —  LiveVox, the leading provider of customer service and digital engagement tools, today announced the acquisition of SpeechIQ.   SpeechIQ is an AI-driven speech analytics and quality assurance platform that will enable LiveVox to substantially strengthen its WFO application suite. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, SpeechIQ is an easy-to-use, cost-effective solution that helps drive agent productivity, operational efficiency, and improved customer engagement in contact centers.

24 state attorneys general step up to defend CFPB

A coalition of two dozen state attorneys general has filed a brief with the Supreme Court arguing that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s regulatory powers should be protected. The coalition, led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, filed an amicus brief in Seila Law, LLC v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The case stems from a 2017 investigation by the CFPB into Seila Law, a California law firm, for its debt-relief practices. Seila Law sued to block the investigation entirely, arguing that the CFPB’s structure was unconstitutional because its director could only be removed for cause.

Ransomware attacks are causing more downtime than ever before

Ransomware attacks are becoming more disruptive, with the amount of downtime for organisations that fall victim to network-encrypting malware campaigns on the rise. According to figures in the new Ransomware Marketplace report from cybersecurity company Coveware, the average number of days a ransomware incident lasts is now 16.2 days – up from 12.1 days in the third quarter of 2019. The increased downtime has been driven by a rise in attacks against large organisations, which often need to spend many weeks remediating and restoring their systems.

CFPB Announces Policy Regarding Prohibition on Abusive Acts of Practices

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (Bureau) today issued a policy statement providing a common-sense framework on how it intends to apply the "abusiveness" standard in supervision and enforcement matters.   The Dodd-Frank Act is the first Federal law to broadly prohibit "abusive" acts or practices in connection with the provision of consumer financial products or services. However, nearly a decade after the Act became law, uncertainty remains as to the scope and meaning of abusiveness. This uncertainty creates challenges for covered persons in complying with the law and may impede or deter the provision of otherwise lawful financial products or services that could be beneficial to consumers.

RMAi Annual Conference

The Payments Summit 2020

The Payments Summit

2020 Annual Utilities Credit & Collections Symposium

Conferences By Monticello

ACA International 2020 Spring Forum & Expo

ACA International

BUMP Collections! Dallas

A "CollectoRMSeries" course by Resource Management Services, Inc.

Commercial Payments International

EuroFinance

AFCC Spring Conference – 2020

NAPCP Commercial Card and Payment Conference: P-Card, Travel Card, ePayables

NAPCP

NCUCA – National Credit Union Collection Alliance 2020

NCUCA National Credit Union Collections Alliance

Collection and Recovery Solutions 2020

Collection & Recovery Solutions - produced by Resource Management Services, Inc.

LendIt Fintech USA

Save 15% with our Discount Code: DC15%

National Association of Chapter 13 Trustees 2020

National Association of Chapter 13 Trustees (NACTT)

Debt Connection Symposium & Expo 2020

Resource Management Services, Inc.

Auto finance Summit 2020

Royal Media