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Fewer Americans fell behind on credit card payments in June, with delinquencies at their lowest this year at major U.S. card lenders, but the results did not stem concerns about the economic recovery.
Credit card delinquency rates have declined steadily since the beginning of the year, signaling that banks should have to write off less debt as uncollectible. Get the full story »
Credit card charge-offs and delinquencies improved at Capital One Financial Corp and Discover Financial Services in June as fewer Americans fell seriously behind on credit card payments. The companies said Thursday that their credit card delinquency rates in June fell to the lowest levels this year. Delinquencies are a sign of future losses. Get the full story »
From Courthouse News Service | Discover Financial Services is being sued in federal court in California over a payment protection plan. The suit says the credit-card company enrolled cardholders in the plan without their knowledge, resulting in unexpected fees.
A Colorado grand jury has indicted six people from the Oakland, Calif., area on charges of using fake credit cards to get cash and goods in Illinois and six other states.
The indictment, made public Monday, alleges the suspects got a toll-free number and printed it on the back of the cards. When bank or business employees couldn’t authenticate the card, they called the number.
Figures provided by FICO Inc. show that 25.5 percent of American consumers — nearly 43.4 million people — now have a credit score of 599 or below, marking them as poor risks for lenders. It’s unlikely they will be able to get credit cards, auto loans or mortgages under the tighter lending standards banks now use.
Discover Financial Services said Thursday it agreed to allow consumers in Serbia use its payment network internationally by the end of the year. DinaCard is the system of national payment cards operated by a division of Serbia’s central bank. It has 2.5 million cards in distribution, according to a release by Discover.
Paying down credit-card debt appears to be on the upswing.
Consumers cut their outstanding revolving debt -– overwhelmingly credit cards -– by an annualized, seasonally adjusted rate of 10.5 percent in May, the Federal Reserve reported Thursday. That’s on the heels of an 11.8 percent drop in April. Revolving credit is a line of credit allowing consumers to pay all or part of an outstanding balance, and, as the balance is paid, it becomes available to spend again as credit. Get the full story »
From Bloomberg News | The U.S. government no longer has a stake in Riverwoods-based Discover Financial Services after the company bought back a warrant issued to the U.S. Treasury Department’s bank-bailout program for $172 million. The 10-year warrant conveyed the right to buy 20.5 million common shares and helped it gain access to $1.2 billion in federal rescue funds.
From CNN | Americans are not as far behind on their bills as a year ago. The number of consumers behind on their credit card payments fell to an eight-year low in the first quarter of 2010, the American Bankers Association said Wednesday. Overall, delinquencies across a wide-range of consumer debt categories have also fallen. Get the full story »
As legislators on Capitol Hill trumpet a final agreement on sweeping financial reform, consumers might be wondering, “What’s in it for me?”
They will benefit in a big-picture way from many of the provisions in the bill, likely to be passed by Congress next week. It is meant to provide a more stable financial system, prevent government bailouts of banks and protect investors. Get the full story »
A new credit card rule that limits late fees will reduce annual earnings of Discover Financial Services by $80 million to $90 million a year, Chief Executive David Nelms said Thursday.
Under new Federal Reserve rules that kick in on Aug. 22, credit card companies can’t charge a late fee of more than $25, or $35 if a consumer has been late on one of their last six payments.
On its flagship Discover More card, late fees are currently $19 on balances up to $250 and $39 on balances of more than $250. Get the full story »
FDIC Deputy Director Robert W. Mooney tells a conference of banking risk managers that U.S. consumers need federal protection from a financial services industry that has exposed them to inappropriate mortgages, credit cards and other practices.
Associated Press | The Federal Reserve adopted new rules Tuesday
aimed at protecting credit card customers from getting socked by lofty
late payment charges and other penalty fees.
The rules, which take effect Aug. 22, bar credit card companies from charging a penalty fee of more than
$25 for paying a bill late. They prohibit credit card companies from
charging penalty fees that are higher than the dollar amount associated
with the customer’s violation. They also ban so-called “inactivity”
fees when customers don’t use the account to make new purchases and
they prevent multiple penalty fees on a single late payment.
By The Problem Solver | Following a two-year investigation of a global credit card scam initiated in Spain, police in 14 countries have arrested 178 people who were suspected of cloning credit cards.
Get the full story: Global credit card scam leads to 178 arrests.
