Alternative Credit/page/3 news and trends

Consumers Pay the Price as State Regulation Fractures FinTech Scale
What's Hot // January 13, 2026

The CFPB’s decision to dial down enforcement of BNPL and other nonbank credit products hasn’t created a vacuum. It has invited fifty competing rulebooks to take its place.

Credit Limit Confusion Sends Consumer Spending Packing
Credit Cards // December 30, 2025

Credit limits have traditionally been treated as a mechanical feature of card programs: a numeric ceiling determined by algorithms, credit scores and internal risk thresholds. But new findings from the report, “Credit Limits: Understanding Requests, Denials and the Consumer Experience,” a PYMNTS Intelligence and Elan Credit Card collaboration,...

43% of Consumers Bail on Purchases Without BNPL Option
BNPL // July 25, 2025

Buy now, pay later (BNPL) options have become deeply embedded in the financial lives of consumers in the United States, influencing everything from daily grocery runs to major appliance purchases. The PYMNTS Intelligence report “Decoding BNPL Users: Necessity, Convenience and Risk Signals” examines the evolving...

FICO to Launch Credit Scores That Incorporate BNPL Data
BNPL // June 23, 2025

FICO will launch its first credit scores that incorporate buy now, pay later (BNPL) data in the fall. FICO Score 10 BNPL and FICO Score 10 T BNPL will initially be offered alongside existing versions of the FICO Score, with no additional fee from FICO,...

Interviews & Exclusives
Credit Limit Confusion Sends Consumer Spending Packing

December 30, 2025
Credit limits have traditionally been treated as a mechanical feature of card programs: a numeric ceiling determined by algorithms, credit scores and internal risk thresholds. But new findings from the report, “Credit Limits: Understanding Requests, Denials and the Consumer Experience,” a PYMNTS Intelligence and Elan Credit Card collaboration, suggests that for consumers, credit limits function as something far […]

43% of Consumers Bail on Purchases Without BNPL Option

July 25, 2025
Buy now, pay later (BNPL) options have become deeply embedded in the financial lives of consumers in the United States, influencing everything from daily grocery runs to major appliance purchases....

Confidence and Cash Flow Shape Working Capital Strategies for Middle-Market Firms

June 16, 2025
The link between feeling good and playing good isn’t just tied to sports. It can hold sway in the business landscape, too. How a business feels and its sense of...

Tight Credit Market Creates ‘Goldilocks Scenario’ for Alternative Lenders

June 12, 2025
The traditional credit supply chain is showing signs of strain, leaving millions of consumers seeking alternatives to conventional banking products and opening new avenues for technologically driven lenders. Mainstream banks...

Quick Reads
FICO to Launch Credit Scores That Incorporate BNPL Data

June 23, 2025
FICO will launch its first credit scores that incorporate buy now, pay later (BNPL) data in the fall. FICO Score 10 BNPL and FICO Score 10 T BNPL will initially be offered alongside existing versions of the FICO Score, with no additional fee from FICO, so lenders can evaluate them while continuing to use the […]

Citi and Carlyle Group Partner on ‘Side-by-Side’ FinTech Fund

June 12, 2025
Citigroup and Carlyle Group have reportedly joined forces to fund FinTech companies. As Bloomberg News reported Thursday (June 12), the companies have signed an agreement that lets them jointly invest...

Pagaya Issues $300 Million in Bonds to Fund BNPL Loans

May 22, 2025
Consumer lending platform Pagaya is reportedly pushing into the pay later market. The company is about to issue $300 million in bonds that will be used to fund buy now,...

Affirm and Shopify Expand Pay-Later Pact to Canada

April 09, 2025
Affirm and Shopify have expanded their pay-later offering beyond U.S. borders. The companies announced Wednesday (April 9) that Shopify merchants in Canada who have signed up for early access can...