The worst thing about payday lending policy and practices is that they can't hide behind "the corporation made me do it." Their organizations are small - usually perhaps a dozen people who each chipped in a couple million bucks, and then the minimum wage folks who sit behind the bullet-proof glass and dispense the money. Yes, they lose A LOT of money. But they charge a lot MORE money. It's the small group of investors who communally choose to prey on the poor. There's little worry about lending regulators (it's lightly regulated - their only limits are state usury laws and then states attorney generals.) Their end of the process goes something like the:

"So Larry, you got a couple million in severance when Too-Big-To-Fail-Bank-#1 let you go, how about casting your bread upon the water and screwing some poor people? We think we can make 50% on an investment."

"Well what about the operating costs? Managers? Employees? Real Estate Costs? LOSSES?"

"Reverse order - Losses will be high. but fees and interest will be higher. And we'll have a high turn and we'll lend over and over to those who pay us back. Real estate leases will be CHEAP - you ever see the parts of town where payday lenders operate? We'll have to take the "crime scene tape" off the places when we move in. Don't worry about the minimum wage employees though. They'll be behind double thick bullet proof glass. And as for management, WE ARE the management. No legal staff, no compliance staff, no analytic staff. We just set interest rates and fees where we know we'll make more than estimated losses (40% by the way). We'll start with a 10% origination fee - so we're only "lending" them 90% of what they "borrowed." And since we're a payday lender, we'll hit them with an amazingly low rate of 3% per week."

"Yeah, but you do know that weekly compounded 3% interest is actually an APR of like 365%."

"Yeah, but these are only loans until they get their next paycheck. Besides, 40% don't pay us back. And we have expenses. We're really only making like 50%."

"Does that include a condo in Aspen as a business expense?"

"Of course! We're not savages!"

"And our corporate retreat/planning session is two weeks in Garmisch-Partenkirchen?"

"Yup - oh yeah and we'll own four condos there as well"

"And whole families are invited? Business Class?"

"Of course! We're not savages!"

"Okay I'm in. $8 million you said?..."