Being the CEO of a credit card issuer or processor pays well. Very well. MasterCard CEO Ajay Banga's pay package last year totaled $11.3 million, an increase of 35 percent over his 2011 compensation of $8.3 million, according to the … Continue reading
Capital One Financial Corporation has seen a 25% drop in profit from the first quarter 2012 to the first quarter 2013. Much of that is due to the fact that the company acquired the online bank ING Direct last year, … Continue reading
Credit card delinquency rates fell again in March as consumers continue to pay down credit card debt in a timely manner. Five of the top six credit card issuers reported lower delinquency rates in March than in February. Discover was the only exception … Continue reading
ATM Fees on the Rise Using an ATM outside of your bank's network is becoming more expensive. The average fee a bank charged a non-customer for using their ATM in 2012 was $2.10, a 20 percent increase from the $1.75 … Continue reading
18 States Considering Ban on Credit Card Surcharges Eighteen states are now considering legislation that would bar retailers from imposing surcharges when consumers use their credit cards. Ten states have already imposed bans on credit card surcharges, which limited the potential impact of … Continue reading
The number of credit cards in the United States increased last year as did the number of credit card transactions, according to the latest Nilson Report. The number of general purpose credit cards in circulation grew to 526.6 million by … Continue reading
Young Adults Retreat From Piling Up Debt Total debt among young adults dropped in the last decade to the lowest level in 15 years. A typical young U.S. household, defined as one led by someone under age 35, had $15,000 … Continue reading
No matter how you calculate it, the CEO of Capital One is well paid. According to the company, Capital One paid Chief Executive Officer Richard Fairbank approximately $17.5 million in compensation for 2012. The payment package included $10.9 million in … Continue reading
FTC: Cramming Fraud Targets Consumers’ Credit Cards The FTC has added a new alert about a fraud called cramming where small charges of $10, $20, or $30 are secretly inserted onto your credit card bill. These small charges add up … Continue reading
Citigroup is buying Capital One's portfolio of Best Buy branded credit cards, allowing Capital One to end its Best Buy agreement early. The cards have loan balances of about $7 billion. The financial details were not released. The sale is … Continue reading
President Obama today re-nominated Richard Cordray as director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. This will be Cordray's first permanent term. He was selected for the post as a recess appointment in January 2012, which did not require Senate confirmation. … Continue reading
More Capital One credit card customers paid their bills on time last month. The issuer's delinquency rate--the percentage of accounts 30 or more days overdue--on U.S. cards declined in December, from 3.71 percent in November to 3.61 percent in December. The … Continue reading
The start of a new year is typically when consumers take a close look at their finances, making resolutions on saving money and cutting expenses. It may be an annual tradition, but this year there is an urgency as lawmakers … Continue reading
Mobile banking is growing rapidly and one bank is promoting its mobile business through a tie-in with Cell Phones for Soldiers. Capital One said last week it will donate one minute of cell phone usage the first time any customer … Continue reading
2012 was a relatively quiet year for the credit card industry. However, there were a number of developments that may have a far-reaching impact in the years to come. Here are the top ten credit card stories of 2012: Swipe … Continue reading
A report recently released by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau showed the number of college credit card agreements between issuers and institutions of higher learning or alumni organizations dropped dramatically in 2011 versus 2010. The data revealed a 20.6 percent decline … Continue reading
The recent actions by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will put $425 million back into the hands of credit card consumers. That is the total amount of restitution that will be refunded to nearly six million credit cardholders as part … Continue reading
After months of delays, mobile payment took another step forward this week with the launch of the Isis system in Salt Lake City and Austin. Isis allows consumers to make payments with their smartphone by waving it at a check-out … Continue reading
The recent acquisitions of ING Direct and HSBC credit card units helped Capital One post a 44 percent increase in profit during the third quarter. Capital One reported a quarterly profit of $1.17 billion, up from $813 million in the … Continue reading
Credit Cards Charge Up Healthy Margins Consumer confidence is up, and household debt is down. That's good news for retailers. It's also good for credit card processors Visa and MasterCard. Strong revenue is only part of the story. Leveraging profits … Continue reading
In September, delinquencies for five major credit card issuers increased from their near-historic lows. Bank of America, American Express, Chase, Discover and Capital One all showed slight increases from August to September in their delinquency rate. A delinquent account is … Continue reading
Another day, another major fine for a credit card company. American Express will refund $85 million to customers and pay $27.5 million in civil penalties to settle regulators' accusations that the company violated a number of consumer protection laws. The … Continue reading
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is punishing credit card issuers that misled cardholders into buying payment protection and credit monitoring services. This week, the CFPB announced that Discover will pay $214 million in fines and penalties. In July, Capital One … Continue reading
Yet another credit card issuer will have to pay back millions of dollars to customers for misleading telemarketing practices. Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the FDIC announced that Discover will refund $200 million to their credit card customers … Continue reading
Many Card Companies Dumping Credit Protection Plans Credit card holders could soon be saying good-bye to some costly add-on products that promised peace-of-mind during a disaster, such as a job loss. And many consumer groups say good-riddance. Several consumer advocates … Continue reading
Dutch financial services company ING is Capital One's biggest stakeholder but will soon sell all of its 54 million shares. These shares represent an estimated 9 percent of Capital One. The underwritten value of the public offering will be approximately … Continue reading
Running short on cash? You may have been tempted to use your credit card at an ATM machine or perhaps try one of those convenience checks in your credit card statement. But before you resort to either of these alternatives, … Continue reading
During times of recession and job loss, debt payment protection plans sound like a financial life jacket that can keep you afloat. Credit card issuers market protection plans as a way to prepare for the changes and hardships in life. … Continue reading
Last Thursday, Capital One agreed to pay $12 million in a settlement over alleged violations of special consumer protections for military families. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Department of Justice took action against Capital One … Continue reading
July 21 marked the one year anniversary of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. During its first year, the CFPB has proved it is an agency of action and willing to stick up for consumers, particularly credit cardholders. Created to enforce Federal … Continue reading
U.S. Consumer Agency to Supervise Credit Reporting Companies The U.S. consumer watchdog agency said it will start closely supervising credit reporting companies in September, bringing the industry under strict federal supervision for the first time. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, … Continue reading
More Americans are paying their credit card bills on time as well as carrying less of a balance. According to figures from last week's regulatory filings, credit card delinquencies decreased for each of the top six credit card issuers in … Continue reading