Consumer Finances/page/2 news and trends

Higher Prices Are Splitting Consumers Into Three Camps
Consumer Insights // October 08, 2026

Americans facing higher bills are taking three different approaches to their paychecks, and the largest group is still holding spending steady or increasing it. That finding helps businesses avoid treating every stretched household as a consumer preparing to stop buying. PYMNTS Intelligence’s “The Fragmented Paycheck:...

Careful Consumers Want Control. SoFi Says Banks Should Hand It Over.
Consumer Payments // October 07, 2026

Watch more: Need to Know With Max Spivakovsky of SoFi  A consumer does not have to stop spending to become more careful about money. Debit spending offers a closer look at how consumers are balancing everyday expenses with travel and entertainment, according to Max Spivakovsky,...

Fed Governor Points Lenders Toward Second-Chance Borrowers
Loans // September 02, 2026

Federal Reserve Gov. Michael Barr is urging lenders to look beyond conventional credit histories when evaluating consumers and entrepreneurs with criminal records, pointing to cash-flow underwriting, alternative financial data and artificial intelligence (AI) as tools that could identify borrowers whose current finances are stronger than...

AI Opens a New Distribution Channel for Credit
Credit Cards // August 31, 2026

Economic pressure is incentivizing consumers more reason to compare the cost of a purchase, the possibility of financing behind it and the alternatives before committing. Financial providers are embedding those choices into a new place: the artificial intelligence (AI) platforms consumers are using to research...

Interviews & Exclusives
Higher Prices Are Splitting Consumers Into Three Camps

October 08, 2026
Americans facing higher bills are taking three different approaches to their paychecks, and the largest group is still holding spending steady or increasing it. That finding helps businesses avoid treating every stretched household as a consumer preparing to stop buying. PYMNTS Intelligence’s “The Fragmented Paycheck: Why Rising Spending No Longer Means Stronger Demand,” part of […]

Careful Consumers Want Control. SoFi Says Banks Should Hand It Over.

October 07, 2026
Watch more: Need to Know With Max Spivakovsky of SoFi  A consumer does not have to stop spending to become more careful about money. Debit spending offers a closer look...

62% of Financially Improving Households Have a Savings Cushion

August 26, 2026
As today’s consumer confidence reading from The Conference Board shows, metrics can be complicated. They may be holding in a narrow range, but household finances are moving in a less...

Method Financial CEO Says Lenders Spot Borrower Financial Distress Too Late

August 10, 2026
Watch more: Monday Conversation With Method’s Jose Bethancourt A lender underwrites a borrower on the strength of a financial picture that starts aging the moment the loan closes. It’s then...

Quick Reads
Fed Governor Points Lenders Toward Second-Chance Borrowers

September 02, 2026
Federal Reserve Gov. Michael Barr is urging lenders to look beyond conventional credit histories when evaluating consumers and entrepreneurs with criminal records, pointing to cash-flow underwriting, alternative financial data and artificial intelligence (AI) as tools that could identify borrowers whose current finances are stronger than their credit files suggest. Speaking Tuesday (Sep. 1) at the […]

Personetics Partners With Plaid to Give Banks Deeper Customer Insights

August 18, 2026
Personetics has added open finance intelligence to its artificial intelligence (AI)-powered personalization platform for banks and credit unions by partnering with Plaid, Personetics said in a Tuesday (Aug. 18) press release. This partnership enables banks...

Private Credit Firms Pull Back From Payment-In-Kind Perks

August 11, 2026
Private credit firms are reportedly moving away from an industry perk called payment in kind. As the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported Tuesday (Aug. 11), payments in kind (PIK) have...

New York Regulator Proposes Licensing Rules for BNPL Lenders

July 15, 2026
The New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) posted a notice of proposed rule making regarding buy now, pay later (BNPL) lenders together with the text of the proposed regulation Wednesday (July 15) and will...