Washington Post questions Warren’s quals
July 29, 2010 | Uncategorized | Comments (0)The Washington Post blog Light on Leadership lays out the skills that the head of the CFPB will need to perform the job effectively.
Of Elizabeth Warren, the writer says:
It is not at all clear that the prohibitive favorite for the job, Elizabeth Warren, has the requisite experience for the director’s job. She has been an academic for most of her career, but has almost no administrative experience.
Yeah, we don’t do that…
July 29, 2010 | Washington Post, industry | Comments (0)Michelle Singletary throws a little hissy in the Washington Post today about payday lenders supposedly drawing from folks’ social security benefits.
I guess it doesn’t matter that CFSA denounced the same practice last week.
Lynn DeVault, board chair of CFSA, said she knows of no payday advance companies that engage in this practice and that the industry strongly supports efforts to block all lenders from gaining access to a borrower’s bank account through these sub-account arrangements.
Dodd-Frank: Act I, Title XII
July 28, 2010 | Huffington Post, federal legislation | Comments (1)
We’re all aware of the new bill in Illinois, but the Huffington Post doles out the latest on small-dollar loan initiatives in the Dodd-Frank Act:
Title XII of the Act “encourage[s] initiatives for financial products and services that are appropriate and accessible for millions of Americans who are not fully incorporated into the financial mainstream.” Specifically, the Act will incentivize financial institutions to offer low-cost, small-dollar loans that serve as safe alternatives to payday loans.
Warren Appears To Be Gaining
July 28, 2010 | Financial Reform Bill - CFPB | Comments (0)
Despite mixed reviews, Washington sees an improvement in Warren’s odds for taking the lead post at the CFPB. Read full article in MarketWatch.
More On Small-Dollar Loan Bill in Illinois…
July 28, 2010 | Uncategorized | Comments (1)A piece in Progress Illinois goes back and forth about the proposed small-dollar loans in the state, and admits that the demand for small-dollar loans is still strong.
The Role of the Regulated in Selecting a Regulator
July 28, 2010 | Financial Reform Bill - CFPB | Comments (0)According to Jeff Sovern, a blogger for The Hill, when discussing who should lead the CFPB, we should not lose sight of the broader issue:
What role should those being regulated — in this case, financial institutions — play in selecting their regulator?
Full blog post here.
T Minus 12-18 Months for CFPB
July 28, 2010 | Uncategorized | Comments (0)
An article in Politico.com continues the discussion over the CFPB. Peter Wallison of the American Enterprise Institute makes some interesting points.
He feels that Congress has not had a significant debate about the proposed bureau…and we agree:
“The whole thing was sold as preventing another financial crisis, and people said that it was necessary to have this consumer bureau that would control Wall Street. But, in fact, it ends up mostly controlling Main Street.”
Concerned about the long-term implications of the CFPB, Wallison said:
“It’s going to make credit much more expensive, simply by reducing competition, but even the companies that survive will have to charge more in order to compensate for the additional costs of regulation.”
See full article here.
Ballot Initiative 164 in Montana
July 28, 2010 | Montana, local issues, regulation | Comments (0)Julie Howen with Title Cash Stores in Montana lends a strong argument against the 36% rate cap proposed in ballot initiative 164. She said:
“Banks don’t want to deal with small amounts or short term loans, that’s one of the biggest issues where we really feel there is a market need.”
Knowing that payday lenders can’t operate under a 36% rate cap, Howen added:
“Bankruptcies go up when we’re not in there and quality of life definitely decreases for many of our customers.”
She’s right to think that supporters of the initiative are people who don’t use the service and “just see the interest rates.”
View full article in KFBB.com
Well, well, well
July 27, 2010 | Texas | Comments (0)An interesting chat log from the Dallas Morning News today. A reporter who’d written a pretty negative story on payday lending answers reader questions and admits, among other things, that PDL is cheaper than many alternatives, that consumers appreciate having the service available, and that the fees are very transparent.
Who needs a fact checker?
July 27, 2010 | Colorado, NPR | Comments (0)The NPR station in Colorado reports on the new payday lending regulation there and mentions that payday lenders in the state are rightly concerned that consumers won’t have access to emergency funds when a need arises. To refute the point, they quote the co-chair of “Coloradans for Payday Lending Reform” simply asserting that there are less expensive alternatives available. Oh really? Well, I certainly wouldn’t want a news organization to strain anything, ya know, calling alternative providers, doing the math to compare the rates, seeing how many people would actually be eligible to use the services in member-only credit unions, checking on the membership fees themselves…
Yeah, fact checking is a tough job, and apparently nobody has to do it as long as you’ve got someone with a vested interest willing to make a declaration.
