During the week I share the latest marketplace lending and fintech news on Twitter as it happens. Then every Saturday I take the most interesting news items and blog posts from the past week and share them here.

People Need Loans as Coronavirus Spreads. Lenders Are Making Them Tougher to Get by The Wall Street Journal – Telling quote from Jared Hecht in the Wall Street Journal: “Lenders have zero idea how to assess risk in this environment”. There is no model for where we are right now which is why most (all?) lenders are tightening lending standards.

A Global Consumer Default Wave Is Just Getting Started by Bloomberg – To get some idea of what we might be in for look at China. Last month past due credit card debt was up 50% from a year earlier as China has seen an explosion of consumer credit in recent years.

Digital training for bankers paying off in coronavirus crisis by American Banker – Those banks that have made digital initiatives a priority in recent years are the ones better prepared to support their customers today.

70 million people can’t afford to wait for their stimulus funds to come in a paper check by Brookings – For those people without a direct deposit on file with the IRS it is going to be a long wait for a stimulus check. Meanwhile, they will be forced to seek payday loans or worse. But as Aaron Klein points out there are things Congress can do to help.

How fintech can save small businesses on the brink by American Banker – As Jo Ann Barefoot points out in her American Banker op-ed innovative companies can help solve many of our pressing financial challenges. AIR’s hackathon this past weekend was to build prototype tools to accelerate and scale up small-business rescue funds.

A National Overdraft Program: How To Provide Fast COVID-19 Relief To People Who Need It The Most by Forbes – Here is an idea that is simple to implement that will help give financial relief to those that need it most: a national overdraft program. It should come with some strings attached, though, says Ron Shevlin.

Microsoft will launch personal finance app with assist from Plaid by American Banker – It is good to have some real fintech developments to report on this week unrelated to what is going on. Microsoft has teamed up with Plaid to create a consumer finance app inside Excel that will launch later this month.

The Rush for $350 Billion in Small-Business Loans Starts Friday. Banks Have Questions. by The Wall Street Journal – This is a travesty SBA. From The Wall Street Journal today: “most of them [lenders] are saying, given what they know today, their likelihood of participation is getting smaller and smaller”. The PPP is not going to work as it now.

Chime pilots way to get $1,200 stimulus checks to users instantly after talks with Mark Cuban by CNBC – Here is some positive news from the frontier of fintech. Chime is piloting a way for its customers to receive the $1,200 stimulus checks instantly, weeks before they are sent.

Small banks struggle to get SBA to return calls, process emergency loans by American Banker – The rollout of the Paycheck Protection Plan has been anything but smooth as many banks simply can’t get through to the SBA.

During the week I share the latest marketplace lending and fintech news on Twitter as it happens. Then every Saturday I take the most interesting news items and blog posts from the past week and share them here.

A List Of Fintech Firms Providing Free Technology During The Coronavirus Crisis by Forbes – In his regular Monday column Ron Shevlin has compiled a list of fintech companies which are extending free, discounted or accelerated deployment offers to financial institutions.

Rakuten withdraws ILC application, plans to refile by American Banker – Last week we saw the FDIC approve both Square and Nelnet’s ILC applications but that has not seemed to encourage Rakuten. This week we learned they have decided to withdraw theirs and refile “in the coming months”.

Investors advise startups as ‘new realities are sinking in, saying goodbye to great employees’ by SF Business Times – Interesting commentary by Ron Suber and Ryan Gilbert on the changing world for fintech leaders and how they are advising their portfolio companies today.

Banks’ Playbook For Getting Through The Coronavirus Crisis by Forbes – Another great piece by Ron Shevlin with a playlist for banks to get through the crisis. It is not enough to provide a few tactical responses, instead “banks need to recast their strategy and budgets in response to the crisis”.

Letter to Congress by OnDeck – Getting potentially millions of loans to small business owners is going to be a logistical challenge to say the least. Many fintech lenders stand ready to help as demonstrated by this letter to Congress.

BankThink Fed’s new TALF has a major gap by American Banker – Completely agree with Todd Baker in his American Banker op-ed. The Fed revived the 2008 Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (known as TALF) but did not update it to include a huge new vertical: personal loans. Big mistake.

$2 Trillion Senate Relief Bill to Pass Vote, Includes Small Business Funds by deBanked – Interesting comments from Stephen Denis of the Small Business Finance Association on how the stimulus bill came together in the Senate to help small businesses.

SoFi sees record account openings, investing activity on fintech platform during coronavirus outbreak by CNBC (video) – Interesting interview by Jim Cramer with Anthony Noto, CEO of SoFi, who said that his company has seen record account openings in recent days and lots of investing activity.

BankThink Let fintechs make SBA loans by American Banker – In this op-ed Sam Taussig of Kabbage makes the case that fintech lenders should be allowed to make SBA loans. I would argue that the ONLY way the PPP money gets into the hands of small business owners quickly is if fintech lenders play a large role.

Banks Urged to Issue More Small-Dollar Loans in Response to Outbreak by The Wall Street Journal – The FDIC and other regulators announced in a joint statement this week that banks should re-enter the business of making short term, small dollar loans to consumers.

During the week I share the latest marketplace lending and fintech news on Twitter as it happens. Then every Saturday I take the most interesting news items and blog posts from the past week and share them here.

Who’s Better: Digital Banks Or Traditional Banks? by Forbes – In his weekly Forbes column Ron Shevlin looks at the strengths and weakness of traditional banks vs digital banks.

Consumers Face a Massive Credit Crunch. Lenders Are Still Figuring Out What to Do by The Wall Street Journal – Lenders and credit reporting agencies are in uncharted waters right now as millions of people are about to struggle to make their loan payments.

Coronavirus throws digital banking into the crucible by American Banker – With many people not wanting to visit banks and millions forced to shelter in place now is the time for the use of digital banking to skyrocket.

Comment Period Ends on Proposal to Update the Definition of an Accredited Investor. So Who Said What? by CrowdFund Insider – In non-coronavirus news CrowdFund Insider has an excellent rundown of the comments received from the SEC proposal to update the definition of an accredited investor.

Fintech App Says Coronavirus Has Caused 30% Drop In Hours Worked by Forbes – Companies like Earnin have real time insight into the state of American workers. It is not pretty right now with a 30% drop in hours for hourly employees.

BankThink Speed matters during a crisis. Here’s how tech can help. by American Banker – In this American Banker op-ed Dan Gorfine has some good ideas on how fintech can directly help and why in times like these a central bank digital currency would be very useful.

Covid-19 Crisis Response: Investors of European SME Lending Marketplace October Approve 3-month Freeze on Loan Capital Repayment by Crowdfund Insider – October (formerly Lendix), a French SME lender, has decided to free all repayments on its loans for three months.

Consumers seek early access to wages to soften coronavirus hit by American Banker – Penny Crosman profiles three companies (PayActiv, DailyPay and Branch) that offer earned wage access as they see increased demand from economically-stressed workers.

During the week I share the latest marketplace lending and fintech news on Twitter as it happens. Then every Saturday I take the most interesting news items and blog posts from the past week and share them here.

If Tim Cook Won’t Tell The World How The Apple Card Is Doing, I Will by Forbes – New research shared by Ron Shevlin shows that there are 3.1 million Apple Card holders and for 50% of these people it is their only credit card. It shows that Goldman Sachs/Apple are getting real traction with a new audience.

JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs are finally beginning to embrace fintech startups. Here’s how they test the waters before committing to working with them by Business Insider – Wall Street titans JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, and Goldman Sachs are retooling how they work so they can more easily partner with startups.

Intuit Eyes Buying Credit Sesame, NerdWallet And Finicity by PYMNTS.com – Seems that Intuit might be on the hunt for more fintech acquisitions. After the Credit Karma announcement other companies in their sights could be finicity, Credit Sesame or NerdWallet.

Brismo to be acquired by LoanClear by Altfi – The mini-boom in fintech M&A continues. This time it is across the pond with Brismo Data being acquired by Dutch investor services firm LoanClear.

Podcast Why Citizens Bank got into point of sale lending by American Banker – I really enjoyed this podcast with Penny Crosman and Brendan Coughlin of Citizens Bank discussing their POS financing deals with Apple and Microsoft.

Figure Technologies Securitizes $150M of Home Equity Loans on Blockchain by Coindesk – In a world first Figure has completed a $150m securitization of HELOCs with all aspects of the process managed on a blockchain.

Digital Banks, Payments Startups Face First Major Test in Virus by Bloomberg – Most fintechs were not around during the financial crisis so a looming downturn will be their first major test.

How banks are helping customers withstand coronavirus shock by American Banker – As communities across the country are hit by the coronavirus some banks are stepping in to help.

During the week I share the latest marketplace lending and fintech news on Twitter as it happens. Then every Saturday I take the most interesting news items and blog posts from the past week and share them here.

The Next Revolution In Personal Finance: The Financial Feed by Forbes – We have feeds for Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Snapchat just to name a few. Why not a finance feed? Interesting idea from Ron Shevlin. Something that knows your financial life and is actually useful.

This startup has raised $190 million from investors like Andreessen Horowitz to help workers get paid in between paychecks. Its head of B2B explains why why it’s introducing a ‘zero integration’ model by Business Insider – I am convinced that earned wage access will become a standard payroll feature this decade and Earnin is leading the way. Their new “zero integration” model will help accelerate this trend.

Alipay owner Ant Financial takes minority stake in Klarna by Tech Crunch – The Chinese fintech behemoth Ant Financial has taken a small stake in Swedish payments platform Klarna.

LendingClub-Radius deal faces high regulatory hurdles by American Banker – Now that regulators are scrutinizing the first ever fintech acquisition of a bank many are predicting a rocky road for LendingClub on this groundbreaking journey.

FT 1000: the fourth annual list of Europe’s fastest-growing companies by the Financial Times – Congrats to OakNorth who have topped the FT list of the fastest growing companies in Europe. Great to see another fintech company leading the way.

London is Open by LendIt Fintech – My good friend and partner, Bo Brustkern, was in London last week meeting with fintech companies, regulators and investors. He shares his thoughts on the state of London fintech and why it is still the epicenter for our industry.

Chime Has Now Raised $700 Million in its Most Recent Funding Round by Crowdfund Insider – It looks like $500 million was not quite enough for Chime in their last funding round. A filing with the SEC shows they have added another $200m to their Series E.

Do peer-to-peer loans deserve a place in your Isa? by the Financial Times – There has been more than £1 billion that has flowed into Innovative Finance ISAs since they launched in 2016, with much of that going to peer to peer lending platforms.

During the week I share the latest marketplace lending and fintech news on Twitter as it happens. Then every Saturday I take the most interesting news items and blog posts from the past week and share them here.

4 ways a Credit Karma deal could pay off for Intuit by American Banker – We can always rely on Penny Crosman to bring us insight into the big fintech news. This deep dive into the Intuit/ Credit Karma deal is illuminating.

Why Credit Karma Shouldn’t Sell To Intuit by Forbes – Here is the contrarian perspective on the Intuit/ Credit Karma deal from Ron Shevlin and why maybe a company like Amazon would be a better fit.

JPMorgan Chase in talks to launch digital bank in UK by Financial Times – There was other big news this weekend beyond the Intuit/Credit Karma deal. JPMorgan Chase announced they are looking to open a digital bank in the UK (I hope they have learned something from their Finn experiment here).

UK digital banks add six million customers in six months but average deposit balances drop by Altfi – The Accenture Digital Banking Tracker reports that UK digital banks added 6 million new customers in H2 2019 to 20 million total, but average deposit balance dropped 25%. So, it was not all good news.

The Power Of Purpose: Fintech’s Role In Stakeholder Capitalism by Forbes – Another great piece from Jennifer Tescher. In fintech it is particularly important to remember that your product needs to result in good outcomes for consumers/businesses. As she says, “a good outcome is what builds trust”.

Alpha (fundraising) and Omega (exits) by Fintech Junkie – It is always interesting to read the Frank Rotman’s Fintech Junkie, particularly with his latest post, that shares some details about QED Investors series A in Credit Karma ten years ago.

We shouldn’t have to wait for FedNow to have faster payments by American Banker – Great op-ed by Aaron Klein and George Selgin on the Fed’s mishandling of faster payments and the negative consequences this has had for poorer Americans.

What N26’s UK exit tells us about entering new markets by 11:FS – Sarah Kocianski looks at the lessons learned by the failure of N26 in the UK and why you need a differentiated offering that is tailored to the local market you are entering.

Lendio Closes $55M Series E Funding Round Led by Mercato Partners by Lendio – Small business loan marketplace Lendio has secured $55 million in capital, including $31 million in equity led by Mercato Partners’ Traverse Fund and a $24 million debt facility from Signature Bank.

Capital One To Focus On Digital, Close 37 Locations by PYMNTS – Not exactly surprising but Capital One is explicitly saying that they will be putting more focus on digital channels going forward.

During the week I share the latest marketplace lending and fintech news on Twitter as it happens. Then every Saturday I take the most interesting news items and blog posts from the past week and share them here.

Jelena McWilliams, Chairman of the FDIC by Barefoot Innovation Group – Probably my favorite episode yet of JoAnn Barefoot’s excellent podcast. Jelena McWilliams, Chairman of FDIC Gov, has a vision to transform not just how banks are supervised but how regulators like the FDIC can encourage innovation.

Exclusive: Starling Bank building loan book with Zopa deal by Altfi – In the UK Starling Bank is now investing in Zopa loans. Good to see innovative fintech companies working together.

Who Wants A Marcus Checking Account? A Lot Of People According To One Survey by Forbes – According to a recent survey by Cornerstone Advisors Goldman’s digital consumer bank Marcus would become the 5th largest bank in the U.S. once they start offering a checking account. Another great piece by Ron Shevlin in Forbes.

N26 customers feel ‘betrayed’ by the German digital bank’s decision to quit the UK by CNBC – The decision by digital bank N26 to exit the UK market has caused “disappointment” and “outrage” among its many users there, with some accusing the company of not being completely forthright about its decision to leave.

German Savers Transform the Baltics Into a Fintech Vanguard by Bloomberg – One of the under the radar success stories of European fintech is Mintos. The Latvian P2P Lending platform has become a phenomenon with 40% of the market in the European Union.

Capping interest rates on payday loans leads to more debt and defaults by The Economist – Interesting study on the impact of interest rate caps on consumer behavior. Sometimes there are unintended consequences to well intentioned initiatives.

Why LendingClub’s Acquisition Of Radius Bank Is A Smart Deal by Forbes – Ron Shevlin gives his perspective on the LendingClub deal and why the company decided to acquire not just any bank, but rather a digital banking leader.

What LendingClub and Radius saw in each other by American Banker – More analysis, this one by Penny Crosman, with comments from both LendingClub president Steve Allocca and Radius Bank CEO Mike Butler.

Fifth Third teams with online lender to offer small-business loans by American Banker – Fifth Third is teaming up with Fundation to use their white label small business lending service.

Fintech Top 100 Influencers by Onalytica – Onalytica analyzed more than 5 million social media posts to discover the top 100 most influential individuals leading the discussion about fintech. I am honored to be included on this list at #8.

During the week I share the latest marketplace lending and fintech news on Twitter as it happens. Then every Saturday I take the most interesting news items and blog posts from the past week and share them here.

The Slow Death Of Checking Accounts by Forbes – Interesting perspective from Ron Shevlin in his Forbes column about checking accounts. He says that the checking account as we know it is dead and will be replaced by something far more powerful within a decade.

More Companies Help Employees With ‘Financial Wellness’ Plans by The Wall Street Journal – Corporate America is beginning to realize the responsibility they have for the financial wellness of their employees. This will be a growing trend this decade as this responsibility deepens. Here is the current state of play in the WSJ.

Starling raises £60m to fund business service and overseas push by Financial Times – I expect this will be the first of many big funding rounds we will see this year from the leading European digital banks. Starling Bank raises £60m for expansion to Europe.

The Forbes Fintech 50: The Most Innovative Fintech Companies In 2020 by Forbes – The Forbes Fintech 50 list of the most innovative fintech companies is out and there are some great names on it. Congrats to everyone who made the list.

A new kind of British invasion: Regtech hackathons by American Banker – I love the work that Jo Ann Barefoot and her Alliance for Innovative Regulation team are doing. We need to rethink how regulators operate and these “tech sprints” (not hackathons) are a great start.

Lending Startup Ads Feature Blockchain Character To Highlight Business by PYMNTS – There is a creative new ad out from Figure explaining blockchain technology in simple terms and how it powers their loans.

How far can venture capital take European challenger banks? by Fintech Futures – The rise of the European challenger banks has been made possible though vast amounts of venture capital. But valuations are skyrocketing so it is unclear where they go from here.

Senators alarmed by study linking loan rates to college choice by American Banker – I am a fan of the work that Upstart is doing and I know they have already penned a response to this study but Senators are taking notice.

Patents reveal extent of China’s digital currency plans by The Financial Times – China has been working on a digital currency since 2014 and have filed more than 80 patents on this project.

$1 billion in $28 increments: Stash reaches major milestone by Tearsheet – Stash is an innovative fintech that is helping to fuel growth in savings and investment from middle class Americans.

During the week I share the latest marketplace lending and fintech news on Twitter as it happens. Then every Saturday I take the most interesting news items and blog posts from the past week and share them here.

Goldman Sachs is close to a deal with Amazon to offer loans to the e-commerce giant’s merchants by CNBC – More on the news that Goldman Sachs may be partnering with Amazon on small business lending to Amazon’s merchants.

Goldman eyes financial cloud, taking a page from Amazon’s playbook by Yahoo Finance – More on Goldman Sachs today as Yahoo Finance finds that “Goldman is weighing the potential to build an external cloud platform for other financial services players, to ultimately build a new revenue stream.” Now that is interesting.

TikTok ads have been 300% more efficient than Instagram ones in getting new users for fintech startup Tally by Business Insider – In non-Goldman Sachs news it looks like TikTok is becoming a solid customer acquisition channel for fintech companies.

David Zalik Keynote Announcement by LendIt Fintech – Super excited to have David Zalik, CEO of Greensky on stage at LendIt Fintech for the first time this year (he has never spoken at a fintech conference before). He will be interviewed by none other than Steve McLaughlin of  FT Partners.

International P2P Lending Volumes January 2020 by P2P-Banking – The monthly loan origination numbers for the European p2p lending platforms are out. Interesting to see which companies are getting traction.

Fintech In 2020: Challenger Banks Are Moving In On The Incumbents For Real by Forbes –  Are digital neobanks becoming too big to fail? Not really. But their valuations are already making their long term success more difficult.

Avant splits into two companies, with potential IPO eyed for one by Crain’s Chicago Business – It is now official. Avant and Amount are two separate companies. But the interesting part of this article is the news that Amount is not only raising a $50m round right now but it is also eyeing a potential public listing as soon as next year.

Bring it on: Exclusive interview with Funding Circle’s UK MD Lisa Jacobs by P2P Finance News – Interesting interview with Lisa Jacobs, the head of Funding Circle UK, on the impact of an economic downturn, the new P2P regulations, the importance of the retail investor and more.

California governor to fintechs: Forget Utah. Be an ILC here. by American Banker – Interesting piece by Kevin Wack on changes California is looking to make that will impact #fintech companies. He includes some comments from my interview with Commissioner Gill of the DBO earlier this week.

Banks, fintech startups clash over ‘the new oil’ — your data by Politico – Banks are looking to limit screen scraping in the name of security which would affect fintech platform’s access to banking data.

During the week I share the latest marketplace lending and fintech news on Twitter as it happens. Then every Saturday I take the most interesting news items and blog posts from the past week and share them here.

Europe’s popular challenger banks Revolut, Monzo, and Starling are in a fundraising arms race. Here’s what we know about the mega-rounds by Business Insider – There is a new funding round coming from Revolut, possibly as soon as later this week, and it is going to be huge.

Philip Hammond joins advisory board of fintech OakNorth by Financial Times – UK challenger bank OakNorth gets a high profile addition to their advisory board with former Chancellor, Philip Hammond.

N26 reaches 5 million customers, including 250,000 in the US by Techcrunch – The German challenger bank had a great 2019, adding 2.5 million customers and it now one of the biggest digital challenger banks in the world.

Goldman Sachs: will Solomon’s consumer gamble pay off? by Financial Times – Today is the first ever investor day for Goldman Sachs. Here is an interesting preview in the Financial Times.

Here’s how 44 insiders at powerful banks, buzzy startups, and big investors are thinking about financial innovation — and why the term ‘fintech’ may be on its last legs by Business Insider – For a term that is used ubiquitously these days it is kind of amusing that there is no agreed upon definition of the word fintech.

House panel to discuss ‘rent-a-bank’ concerns in two February hearings by American Banker – Next month will be a busy one for those following fintech regulation in DC. The House Financial Services Committee will hold two hearings in February on how regulatory policy should govern loans sold across state lines.

Buy now, pay later shopping app Klarna, which lets you buy from any store with no late fees, has launched in Australia. Here’s how it works by Business Insider Australia – Klarna launches in Australia and receives $200 million investment from the country’s largest bank.

Fintech Adoption in North America Lags Global Acceptance by The Financial Brand – Interesting that the US is below average when it comes to the adoption of fintech according to the recent report by EY. Good commentary by Jim Marous on what this means for banks and fintechs.

The biggest change to credit scores in years-and what it means for fintechs by Fortune – The new changes to FICO has been a hot topic since they announced it last week. Fortune Magazine talked to some industry leaders to get their take.

Privilege And Peril In Fintech by Forbes – Really liked this piece by Jon Schlossberg of Even. Most of the people creating fintech products live privileged lives in expensive cities. It is good reminder for all of us.