ABA: Report Shows Credit Card Use Expanded in Third Quarter 2019
Credit card use increased in the third quarter of 2019, according to the American Bankers Association’s latest quarterly Credit Card Market Monitor. Seasonally adjusted purchase volumes rose among prime (+0.8% or $3.85/month) and super-prime (+0.2% or $1.07/month) accounts compared to the previous quarter, consistent with solid consumer spending growth during the same period, while subprime…
FHFA: Updated Minimum Financial Eligibility Requirements for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Seller/Servicers Proposed
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today proposed updated minimum financial eligibility requirements for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Seller/Servicers. The updated minimum financial requirements will further strengthen the Enterprises’ Seller/Servicer requirements and provide transparency and consistency of capital and liquidity required for Seller/Servicers with different business models. A key improvement from the minimum financial…
Federal Reserve: Do Minorities Pay More for Mortgages?
Read the full paper here. Abstract: We test for racial discrimination in the prices charged by mortgage lenders. We construct a unique dataset where we observe all three dimensions of a mortgage’s price: the interest rate, discount points, and fees. While we find statistically significant gaps by race and ethnicity in interest rates, these gaps…
SBA: FDIC & SBA Update Money Smart for Small Business Credit and Banking Modules
The U.S. Small Business Administration and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation have released two updates to the popular Money Smart for Small Business curriculum. The updated modules focus on banking and credit. They are available for SBA Resource Partners, financial institutions and economic development organizations to help train entrepreneurs and small business owners. Money Smart for Small Business is an…
ABA: Consumer Delinquencies Mixed in Third Quarter of 2019
Consumer credit delinquencies were mixed in the third quarter of 2019, with delinquencies falling for bank cards (credit cards provided by banks) and rising for the composite index of closed-end loans, according to results from the American Bankers Association’s Consumer Credit Delinquency Bulletin. Overall, delinquencies rose in eight of the 11 categories tracked by ABA…
Federal Reserve: New Report Assesses Information Presented to Prospective Borrowers on Small Business Online Lender Websites
The Federal Reserve Board on Thursday released Uncertain Terms: What Small Business Borrowers Find When Browsing Online Lender Websites, a report that examines the information that prospective small business borrowers encounter when researching and comparing credit products offered by online lenders. Nonbank online lenders are becoming more mainstream alternative providers of financing to small businesses. In…
OCC: Mortgage Performance Improves Slightly in Third Quarter 2019
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 third quarter of 2019. The OCC Mortgage Metrics Report, Third Quarter 2019 showed 96.4 percent of mortgages included in the report were current and performing at the end of the quarter,…
FHFA: 2018 Report to Congress on Guarantee Fees Issued
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) today released its annual report on single-family guarantee fees charged by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac (the Enterprises). The Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 requires FHFA to conduct an ongoing study of the guarantee fees charged by the Enterprises and to submit a report to Congress each…
FFIEC: Federal Banking Agencies Announce Availability of 2018 Small Business, Small Farm, and Community Development Lending Data
The three federal banking agency members of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) with Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) responsibilities today announced the availability of data on small business, small farm, and community development lending reported by certain commercial banks and savings associations, pursuant to the CRA. The agencies releasing the data are the Board…
OCC: Key Risks Highlighted for Federal Banking System
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) today reported operational, credit, and interest rate risks are among the key themes for the federal banking system in its Semiannual Risk Perspective for Fall 2019. Highlights from the report include: Operational risk is elevated as banks adapt to a changing and increasingly complex operating environment. Key…