At a glanceWednesday, March 03, 2021

Collection Industry News At A Glance - March 3, 2021
Wednesday March 3, 2021
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Articles

 
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Takes Action Against Payment Processor and Its Former CEO for Supporting Internet-Based Technical-Support Scams

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) filed a lawsuit in federal court against BrightSpeed Solutions Inc. (BrightSpeed) and its founder and former chief executive officer, Kevin Howard, for knowingly processing payments for companies engaged in internet-based technical-support fraud. Chicago-based BrightSpeed was a privately owned, third-party payment processor founded and operated by Howard in 2015. It wound down business operations in March 2019.

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Senate approves bill lowering NM loan interest rate cap

Mar. 3—SANTA FE — A renewed attempt to lower New Mexico's small-loan interest rate cap — to 36% from 175% — is headed to the state House after being approved by the Senate on Tuesday.

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CFPB nominee vows to enforce fair lending, scrutinize Big Data

Rohit Chopra, President Joe Biden’s alternative to run the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, informed a Senate panel Tuesday he plans to prioritize the enforcement of fair lending legal guidelines and scrutinize the emergence of huge know-how corporations into monetary providers

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Private employers added back 117,000 jobs in February, missing expectations: ADP

U.S. private employers added back fewer jobs than expected in February, disappointing economists who had anticipated that the early stages of the vaccine rollout and falling COVID-19 cases would allow hiring to pick up strongly during the month.

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FCC Publishes CFPB Webinar Detailing Pandemic Scams Targeting Seniors

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in partnership with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has made available a recent webinar, where staffers at the agencies detail the extent and operations of many scams that exist aiming to take advantage of senior citizens during the ongoing COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.

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As millions of Americans fall behind on mortgages, CFPB nominee Rohit Chopra wants to stave off “looming problems” for homeowners

Staving off another housing crisis is a top priority for the nominee to head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Rohit Chopra, President Joe Biden's pick for the job, told the Senate Banking Committee during a confirmation hearing Tuesday the agency charged with making sure financial institutions treat customers fairly needs to be ready for housing fallout due to the coronavirus pandemic.

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Square’s bank arm launches as fintech aims ‘to operate more nimbly’

Nearly one year after receiving conditional approval, Square said Monday afternoon that its industrial bank, Square Financial Services, has begun operations. Square Financial Services completed the charter approval process with the FDIC and Utah Department of Financial Institutions, meaning it's ready for business.

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STUDY: CFPB COMPLAINTS SHATTERED RECORDS IN 2020, EXPOSING HOW THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC BATTERED CONSUMER FINANCES

WASHINGTON -- Consumer complaints about problems with financial companies such as banks, credit bureaus and debt collectors rose by more than 50 percent in 2020 and set new records for each month of the year, according to a new report from the U.S. PIRG Education Fund. The report, Consumers In Peril, which analyzed complaints received by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), was released Monday to kick off National Consumer Protection Week.

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CFPB: 10 Pct Of US Households At Risk Of Eviction, Foreclosure

A new Consumer Finance Protection Bureau report says that there are currently 11 million people at risk of losing their housing, whether by evictions or foreclosure. That figure comes out to almost 10 percent of U.S. households. The report calls it "common sense that safe, affordable, and stable housing provides the foundation for people’s well-being, financial and otherwise."

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Biden’s CFPB nominee Rohit Chopra brings ‘substantive’ regulatory expertise

Rohit Chopra, President Joe Biden’s nominee to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, is likely to return the agency to its original incarnation, proactively rooting out bad actors and levying hefty fines on violators, regulatory experts say. Chopra's confirmation hearing on Tuesday will be the first of Biden's regulators to face the Senate Banking Committee.

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New Report From Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Finds Over 11 Million Families At Risk Of Losing Housing

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a report that warns of widespread evictions and foreclosures once federal, state, and local pandemic protections come to an end, absent additional public and private action. Over 11 million families are behind on their rent or mortgage payments: 2.1 million families are behind at least three months on mortgage payments, while 8.8 million are behind on rent. Homeowners alone are estimated to owe almost $90 billion in missed payments. The last time this many families were behind on their mortgages was during the Great Recession.

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Emprise Technologies Awarded Software Development Contract by Toledo Police Department

Toledo, OH – Emprise Technologies, a Toledo-based family-owned consulting company, was awarded the Case Management Solution contract for the Toledo Police Department. The Case Management Solution will provide a huge lift in performance and efficiency to the TPD’s daily operations and activity. The solution will be developed using Decisions, a no-code platform and will include a user-friendly web interface, robust search functionality, reporting capabilities, workflow management, and remote access throughout the City for users with permissions.

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Governor Laura Kelly Announces New Effort to Support Kansas Businesses in COVID-19 Recovery

Governor Laura Kelly today announced that funding provided to Kansas’ hospitality industry through the Hospitality Industry Relief Emergency (HIRE) Fund has been converted from bridge loans to grants.

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U.S Mortgage Rates Jump on Rising Treasury Yields as Reinflation Jitters Hit the Markets

Mortgage rates were on the rise for a 2nd consecutive week in the week ending 25th February. Following an 8-basis point rise from the week prior, 30-year fixed rates jumped by 16 basis points to 2.97%.

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Cyber Security Today – Fraud Prevention Month starts, cyber incident costs hospital chain $67 million and problems with COVID apps

Today is the start of Fraud Prevention Month, a time to remind consumers and businesses to be more aware of all the scams going on. While not all fraud occurs online a significant amount does, so I’m going to spend a few minutes with you on this.

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New York extends state debt collection until March 31

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — New York State will halt, for the 12th time, the collection of medical and student debt owed to the state until the end of March, Attorney General Letitia James announced Sunday.

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Stimulus checks: Personal income, savings, and spending surged after round 2 of direct payments

Personal income jumped 10% in January, reaching its highest level on record after the distribution of the second stimulus checks and the additional $300 in weekly unemployment benefits kicked in last month, according to data by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Spending and savings also increased.

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Can refinancing a mortgage hurt my credit score?

If you own a home, you’ve probably heard of the term "mortgage refinance" before. Refinancing your mortgage is when you take your existing home loan and pay it off with a new loan by a different lender. The new mortgage lender should offer a lower interest rate allowing you to save money and possibly lower your monthly payment.

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National Consumer Protection Week is March 1 to March 5

INDIANAPOLIS – To kick off National Consumer Protection Week, Attorney General Todd Rokita is reiterating his commitment to protecting Hoosier consumers, urging them to report scams and fraudulent business activities to his Office’s Consumer Protection Division. 

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Judge rules CDC eviction moratorium unconstitutional

A federal judge in Texas ruled on Thursday that an order from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) temporarily halting evictions amid the pandemic is unconstitutional.

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Self-employed and gig workers could get bigger loans under new PPP rules. They may want to wait to apply

Millions of self-employed and gig workers got good news this week. The Biden administration on Monday changed how the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program calculates forgivable loans for the smallest firms and sole proprietors.

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Commercial/Multifamily Lending to Increase 11% to $486 Billion in 2021

It was nearly a year ago that I penned a blog post with this opening sentence: “Last week, the week of Feb. 24, 2020, financial markets recognized that the Coronavirus has arrived in the United States.” Little did we know that now a year later, just how much the world, our lives and the commercial real estate industry has changed. The COVID-19 pandemic took a heavy toll on commercial and multifamily property sales and mortgage originations in 2020, but not equally. The impacts have varied significantly by property type and capital source–with lodging and retail feeling the greatest downward pressure. The multifamily sector held up far better, driven by refinance activity in government-backed loans.

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Mortgage and refinance rates today, February 25, 2021

Average mortgage rates nudged higher yet again yesterday. Of course, these rates remain exceptionally low by historical standards and are at dream levels for most. But they’re not like they were in 2020 and early January.

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Biden administration may undo certain Trump-era mortgage rules

The Biden administration hinted it may dismantle mortgage rules inked during the waning days of Donald Trump’s presidency. Those Trump-era rules erase protections for borrowers and may open the door to risky loans that led the housing bubble to burst in the 2008 financial crisis, according to some consumer advocates.

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AG Ellison Joins Multi-State Coalition Calling For Student Loan Debt Cancellation

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — Attorney General Keith Ellison says that he is joining a multi-state coalition to urge congressional resolutions calling for the cancellation of up to $50,000 in federal student debt.

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Utah State Selects CSS IMPACT Financial Cloud as its Enterprise Debt Collections Platform

SALT LAKE CITY, Feb. 25, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The State of Utah known as one of the fastest growing technology centers in the country, selects CSS IMPACT Financial Cloud as its Enterprise Debt Collections Ecosystem Platform. CSS, Inc., the developers of "IMPACT | HD 2.0" is the leading provider of "NextGen" Cloud Financial & Debt Collections Ecosystem platforms with a focus on "Ai" (Artificial Intelligence) machine learning Digital Collections.

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Millennials are living on their plastic, and relief will take more than a swipe of a card

Although American consumer debt declined last year due to decreased consumer spending during the pandemic, many millennial credit card holders are having financial deja-vu.

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Jobless claims: Another 730,000 Americans filed new unemployment claims

Weekly unemployment claims fell far more than expected last week, as the labor market recovery took a stride forward even as harsh winter weather compounded with the coronavirus pandemic over the past several weeks.

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U.S. bank regulators say pandemic drove up risk in leveraged lending

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The credit risk for large, syndicated loans, including leveraged loans, remains high and increased in 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic took an economic toll, U.S. bank regulators cautioned on Thursday. A new regulatory report found that the level of “non-pass” loans nearly doubled in 2020, rising to 12.4% from 6.9%, with most of those riskier loans held by nonbanks. U.S. banks accounted for 45% of the $5.1 trillion in large, syndicated loans but held less than 25% of all non-pass loans

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Fixed-rate student loan refinancing rates hit record low

Rates for well-qualified borrowers using the Credible marketplace to refinance student loans into 10-year fixed-rate loans hit another low during the week of Feb. 15, 2021.

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NC lawmakers move again to shut down debt settlement companies

State lawmakers will try again this year to close a loophole in North Carolina law that they say lets out-of-state debt settlement companies run bait-and-switch tactics on unsuspecting people. This same bill cleared the North Carolina House easily last year and was moving through committee in the Senate when companies stepped up a lobbying effort to stall the measure, which they say will put them out of business in North Carolina and take a reasonable path out of debt off the table for consumers.

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Industry Events

 
RMAI 2021 Annual Conference – In Person and Virtual

Receivables Management Association International (RMAi)


Las Vegas, Nevada
April 12 - 15 , 2021

https://rmaintl.org/events/2021-annual-conference/

Collection and Recovery Solutions 2021 (CRS2021)

Resource Management Services, Inc.

Produced by: Resource Management Services, Inc. 10440 Pioneer Blvd., Suite 2 Santa Fe Springs, CA. 90670-8235
Las Vegas , Nevada
May 12 - 14 , 2021

562-906-1101 - This event has been tentatively postponed - to be held either later this year, or next year.