Consumer lending

Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration sent letters Wednesday to 20 nonbank lenders that charge triple-digit annual percentage rates to try to determine if their use of online referrals is steering borrowers into larger loans than they want or need.

A new financial technology company called Scratch is planning to use a new web-based platform along with an alternative pricing model to compete with companies that service mortgages and other consumer loans.

The report from an advocacy group that focuses on college affordability says that schools need to do a better job of educating students about their eligibility for federal loans, which typically carry lower interest rates than loans from banks and other private-sector lenders.

Commercial mortgage-backed securities delinquency rates are likely to continue to decrease for the rest of the year, as new issuances outpace maturing loans and precrisis loans continued to get resolved by special servicers, Fitch Ratings said.

Four lenders, led by Sallie Mae, have long dominated the market for private student loans. But they could soon face new competition from Navient and Nelnet.

The nation's fifth-largest bank on Monday rolled out a three-month consumer loan that is far less expensive than the typical payday loan. The move comes as regulators are encouraging banks to reach out to the subprime market, which they largely abandoned.

Caliber Home Loans’ next offering of subprime mortgage bonds includes a new product offered to borrowers with a stronger credit profile than its other programs – but also less equity in their homes.

Moody’s expects losses on Drive Auto Receivables Trust 2018-4 to reach 25% of the original balance over the life of the deal, down from 26% for its prior deal.

Investor appetite for deeply subordinated debt is increasing even as the industry starts to consolidate; problems at Honor Finance demonstrate the limits of relying on overcollateralization to offset losses.

About 8.5% of loans backing the $256.2 million transaction were reassigned from a 2015 deal; this boosted the weighted average seasoning to seven months from one month for ACA's prior deal.