Despite claims from the payday loan industry that Americans don’t want reforms intended to prevent borrowers of these short-term loans from falling into a revolving debt trap, two new reports show that most people do think it’s time to rein in payday lending and provide more affordable loan options for borrowers in need. [More]
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Bank Overdraft Policies Have Improved, But Not Enough To Protect Most Consumers
Over the years, banks across the country have modified their policies regarding overdraft fees to comply with federal regulations — including requiring consumers to opt-in to the costly protection. Despite this, account holders spend nearly $32 billion each year on the fees. And according to a new report, that likely won’t end anytime soon, as most large U.S. banks continue to charge high, sometimes exorbitant overdraft fees. [More]
Study: Home Broadband Subscriptions Are Falling As More Americans Live By The Smartphone
There’s a general feeling in the air that mobile everything is the wave of the future. Optimized websites, streaming apps, new data packages… everything points to a continuing trend of our lives centering around the pocket computers we all carry and still anachronistically call “phones.” It’s one of those things we all “know,” anecdotally as much as anything else. But now there’s new data showing that not only is the mobile future already here, but also it’s robust enough that consumers are starting to pull the plug on their home internet connections. [More]
Employees: Internet Is Vital To Our Work, We Promise We Don’t Just Watch Cat Videos
Some employees might freely admit that at one point or another they’ve been sucked into the unending vortex that is the Internet; whether it be cute cat videos, hilarious memes, in-depth investigative pieces or stalking your former significant others on Facebook. But a new report from Pew Research Center finds that most employees only use the power of the Internet for good, productive things while at work. [More]
Chase To Cut Checking Account Fee Disclosures From 100+ Pages To One
When the charitable folks at the Pew Charitable Trusts first suggested that banks could condense their overly complicated fee schedules from over 100 pages to one simple page, it seemed unlikely that any major bank would follow suit. But this morning, JPMorgan Chase announced it would do just that. [More]