U.S. Market Close 6/11/2025

DOW 30  -0.00%  -1.10  42,865.77

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Protecting the American public from crypto risks and harms: BROOKINGS

Cryptocurrencies are once again in the national spotlight due to a series of high-profile federal actions that have reignited crypto policy discussions. Shortly after Inauguration Day, the Trump administration issued an executive order to create the President’s Working Group on Digital Asset Markets, and in March, issued another to establish a “Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.” Recently, the president’s “crypto dinner” with top investors in the $TRUMP memecoin drew sharp media scrutiny, fueling broader concerns about conflicts of interest and corruption.  

At the same time, Congress has ramped up its focus on crypto market structure (efforts to regulate the crypto market, including crypto exchanges and related intermediaries) and stablecoin legislation (which would regulate stablecoins, a type of cryptocurrency pegged to a stable value, such as the U.S. dollar). In the 119th Congress, both the STABLE Act and the GENIUS Act have advanced with bipartisan support, and the House recently unveiled the Digital Asset Market Clarity (CLARITY) Act.

Read more at The Brookings Institution

Fraud is Mutating and Growing. Cut It Off As Early As Possible

According to a new report, the explosion of financial fraud – and its increasing sophistication and professionalization – will require a refreshed response from banks and credit unions, one that emphasizes upstream prevention in onboarding and identity verification in real time.

Why we chose this report: Fraud continues to blossom across the financial landscape, but its preferred targets and vectors are shifting rapidly. Understanding these changes is important in shaping effective responses from banks and credit unions.

Executive Summary

• The 2025 State of Fraud Report reveals a critical inflection point in the financial industry’s battle against fraud, with 60% of institutions reporting increased fraud attacks affecting both consumer and business accounts. The landscape is dominated by sophisticated fraud rings, while digital channels (online or mobile banking) remain the primary vulnerability.

Read more at The Financial Brand

Most Financial Institutions Have a Data Problem, Not a Deposit Problem

Banks are facing unusually sluggish deposit growth projections of just 4 to 4.5%. Financial institutions who successfully integrate behavioral data, account activity, and permissioned insights can transform marketing into service. There are five key strategies: breaking down data silos, embracing value-based permissioning, using multiple data sources to find demand, treating onboarding as continuous, and implementing true personalization that drives action.

Many banks say they personalize their marketing and cross-selling — few actually do. True personalization goes beyond inserting a customer’s first name in an email. It means understanding context: what the customer needs now, what they’re likely to need next, and what channel they’re most likely to respond to.

That requires combining behavioral data, account activity, life-stage signals, and permissioned insights into a cohesive picture. When done right, personalization feels less like marketing and more like service — and that’s what builds trust, loyalty, and ultimately, deposits.

Read more at The Financial Brand

Virtual Cards Are Gaining Ground. Here’s What Banks Must Do Next

Executive Summary

• 42% of U.S. consumers used a virtual card in the past six months, and 65% say they’re likely to use one in the next year.
• Many financial institutions still struggle to articulate the benefit from virtual cards, focusing marketing efforts on features or tech capabilities that don’t resonate with consumers
• To encourage adoption, bank marketers need to tell stories that match consumers’ real word needs. Personal, intuitive and timely messaging can help shift virtual cards from niche financial tools to an everyday habit.

Virtual card adoption is rising fast as digital wallets become a core part of how consumers shop and pay. According to PYMNTS/Elan, 42% of U.S. consumers used a virtual card in the past six months, and 65% say they’re likely to use one in the next year.

This shift highlights growing comfort with digital-first payments. But while usage is climbing, many banks and financial institutions still struggle to explain why virtual cards matter and how consumers can benefit from them. Instead of showcasing how they can simplify everyday tasks, marketing efforts often focus on features or technical capabilities that don’t resonate with most users.

Read more at The Financial Brand

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Our #IRS Interactive Tax Assistant has answers.

Watch this short video to learn more:

https://youtu.be/y6HkaBkdKdU

Jose L. Santiago

Public Affairs Specialist

Tax Outreach, Partnership and Education

Email: jose.l.santiago@irs.gov

Serving Gen Z remains a lending challenge — and opportunity

Lenders can adjust their credit scoring systems with alternative data while still weighing the associated risks and benefits.

Over the last four years the number of Generation Z consumers with credit files grew by over 76%, increasing from 20 million in 2021 to 34.5 million in 2024, and is outpacing the Silent Generation and Millennials in terms of credit file presence. This influx of Gen Z consumers entering the credit system is creating both a challenge and an opportunity for banks.

Despite their limited credit histories, Gen Z’s influence is extending into major sectors like real estate and auto, making it vital for banks to understand their financial behavior and habits. What’s more, banks must meet these younger customers’ demand for seamless and personalized service that caters to their specific needs and lifestyles.

Read more at BAI.ORG

Lending & Secured Finance 2025: Private Credit and Middle Market Update: Developments and Trends

O’Melveny partners Ike Chidi, Glen Lim, Jeff Norton, and Jennifer Taylor co-authored “2025 Private Credit and Middle Market Update: Developments and Trends,” an Expert Analysis chapter within ICLG’s Lending & Secured Finance 2025, 13th Edition.

The authors note that despite the economic and political risk factors that are creating uncertainty in the deal market, “deals will continue to get done in 2025, and we can expect increasing convergence and consolidation of terms, structures, and lenders among the private credit and bank markets, as well as ever-evolving terms for leveraged credits generally.”

Chidi counsels clients on commercial lending matters, primarily in the private equity sector. He represents lending institutions, private equity firms, and both public and private companies in structuring and negotiating financing transactions.

Read more at OMM.COM

These States Have the Highest Rates of Student Loan Delinquency

Student loan borrowers in southern states are far more likely to be behind on their payments.

The Department of Education said that roughly two out of every 10 student loan borrowers are more than 90 days past due. According to data from the New York Federal Reserve Bank, that concentration is higher in southern states.

In seven states, all in the South, more than 30% of student loan borrowers have at least one loan that is ninety days or more past due, the New York Fed data showed. Mississippi had the highest concentration of borrowers with late payments, at 44.6%, Alabama had 34.1%, and West Virginia rounded out the top three with 34% behind on payments.

Read more at INVESTOPEDIA

Fiscal policy effects on the economy: BROOKINGS

Fiscal policy decreased U.S. GDP growth by 0.5 percentage point in the first quarter of 2025, the Hutchins Center Fiscal Impact Measure (FIM) shows. The FIM translates changes in taxes and spending at federal, state, and local levels into changes in aggregate demand, illustrating the effect of fiscal policy on real GDP growth. GDP decreased at an annual rate of 0.2% in the first quarter of 2025, according to the government’s latest estimate.

The 0.5 percentage point decrease in the first quarter was largely the result of a decline in federal purchases, reflecting a step down in defense spending after two strong quarters as well as the effects of recent actions taken to reduce the federal workforce. (Workers who were placed on administrative leave or who accepted offers under the deferred resignation program continued to receive pay but were not working, which boosted the federal deflator and lowered real purchases.) Net transfers increased the FIM by less than 0.1 percentage point. We expect the FIM to remain negative in the next quarter and through the end of our forecast period (the first quarter of 2027).

Read more at The Brookings Institution

Credit Card Delinquency Rate Trend

Credit card delinquency rates, defined as accounts that are 90 days or more overdue, have been below 3% in recent years. However, during the pandemic, the delinquency rate fell to a low of 1.48%, bottoming out in April of 2021. Since then, the delinquency rate has more than doubled due to increased revolving debt incurred by consumers in the past two years, reaching 3.23% as of Q3 2024, easing slightly from Q2 but still near its highest level since the start of 2012.

Credit Card Debt Trend

Total consumer revolving credit card debt passed the $1 trillion mark just before the pandemic and fell sharply to a low of $970 billion in January 2021. Since then, revolving debt has climbed back beyond pre-pandemic levels to over $1.324 trillion as of Q1 2025, as reported by the Federal Reserve.

Read more at INVESTOPEDIA.com

Survey: Bank and Credit Card Apps and Websites Struggle to Stand Out

With consumers conducting more and more of their financial affairs electronically, most banks and credit card companies are earning solid scores for the quality of their mobile apps and websites. At the same time, new J.D. Power studies have found that those apps and websites have become so similar in their functionality as to be virtually indistinguishable, leaving little reason for people to choose one provider over another.

Key Takeaways

• Consumers are generally satisfied with banks' and credit card companies' apps and websites today.
• There's little difference between the top bank and credit card app performers and those further down the list.
• Multifactor authentication has won over many consumers who once considered it a nuisance.
• Advances in artificial intelligence may make virtual assistants more versatile and useful.

Read more at INVESTOPEDIA.com

The 2025 Credit Union Innovation Readiness Index: Closing Gaps, Winning Members

More than eight in 10 top-performing credit unions say external partners accelerate their innovation and scale, enabling them to offer 74% of high-value financial products and features by 2031. PYMNTS Intelligence’s latest, “The 2025 Credit Union Innovation Readiness Index: Closing Gaps, Winning Members,” a PYMNTS Intelligence and Velera collaboration, details how these institutions prioritize tools aligned with member demand, balancing legacy service models with forward-looking, data-driven investment.

Inside the June Index

49%: Share of all products (credit cards, loans etc.) that top performers already offer, compared to 28% among bottom performers

68%: Portion of SMBs that left a credit union that want online onboarding when applying for new products

78%: Percentage difference in the share of Gen Z consumers who want digital onboarding compared to the average consumer

Read more at PYMNTS.COM

Teach kids this financial literacy advice and they’ll be ready for a bright future

Many high school students will spend the summer months working. Summer jobs offer us experience and a paycheck, and they also offer young people a chance to begin building a vital skill: managing money. 

The good news? Teens and young adults have the biggest financial advantage of all: time. While many adults wish they had started saving or investing earlier, your child has something they don’t: decades ahead of them to let money grow. And thanks to the power of compounding interest, even small amounts invested early can turn into something huge.

Here’s a classic example to show just how powerful this is:

Would you rather have $1 million today or a penny that doubles everyday for 30 days?

Read more at Kidsburgh.org

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Has pay kept up with inflation? BROOKINGS

Key takeaways:

• Different ways of calculating real pay can lead to conflicting conclusions about whether pay has kept up with inflation.
• These interactive charts show changes in real pay across pay measures, inflation measures, time periods, and sectors.
• The interactives and analysis will be updated as new data are available.

There are various ways to evaluate recent trends in real pay (nominal pay adjusted for inflation), including using different pay and inflation measures and reference periods. These factors can lead to different conclusions about trends in real pay in the United States. In October 2023, we published a detailed analysis breaking down these differences. The interactive figures in this updated piece allow you to explore changes in real pay using five different pay measures and two inflation measures, relative to a base period of your choice, relative to prior business cycle trends, and across sectors. The interactives will update each quarter as new data are released.

Read more at The Brookings Institution

Sending money to family in foreign countries may be taxed more

Jun. 9—Families hoping to send money to loved ones in other countries may be hit with additional fees from a tax and spending bill proposed by the Trump administration that would slap a 3.5% tax on remittances sent by anyone who is not a U.S. citizen.

The "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" passed through the House in May and is now being debated by the Senate. The budget bill has several proposed tax changes, which include taxing money sent from an estimated 40 million non-US citizens — including green card holders, temporary workers and undocumented immigrants — to family and friends in other countries. The bill had a 5% tax but was reduced to 3.5%.

The bill is another way the Trump administration is hoping to dissuade immigrants, both documented and undocumented, from coming into the country and moving money out of the U.S. economy.

Read more at ALBUQUERQUE.COM

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Alternative Lending Market Size Forecasted To Achieve $821.6 Billion By 2029 With Steady Growth

Our market reports now include the latest updates on global tariffs, trade impacts, and evolving supply chain dynamics.

What Is the Alternative Lending Market Size and Projected Growth Rate?

In the past few years, the size of the alternative lending market has seen a fast-paced expansion. This market is set to grow from $431.29 billion in 2024, reaching $491.89 billion in 2025, following a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.1%. This growth trajectory can be traced back to the escalating demand for easy-to-access credit, the emergence of digital platforms that expedite loan processing, restricted access to conventional bank loans pushing borrowers towards alternative lending sources, the evolution of online peer-to-peer lending networks, and a growing appeal for investment opportunities in unsecured loans.

The size of the alternative lending market is anticipated to expand rapidly in the coming years, reaching $821.60 billion in 2029 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.7%. This anticipated growth during the forecast period is due to factors such as the ongoing shift towards financial services digitalization, heightened utilization of artificial intelligence and machine learning for enhanced credit risk appraisal, spreading use of blockchain technology to improve the transparency and security of lending, increased attraction for alternative lending among underserved and credit-constrained borrowers, and the amplified usage of mobile apps to acquire fast and convenient loans.

Read more at openpr.com

Survey: Bank and Credit Card Apps and Websites Struggle to Stand Out

With consumers conducting more and more of their financial affairs electronically, most banks and credit card companies are earning solid scores for the quality of their mobile apps and websites. At the same time, new J.D. Power studies have found that those apps and websites have become so similar in their functionality as to be virtually indistinguishable, leaving little reason for people to choose one provider over another.

Key Takeaways

• Consumers are generally satisfied with banks' and credit card companies' apps and websites today.
• There's little difference between the top bank and credit card app performers and those further down the list.
• Multifactor authentication has won over many consumers who once considered it a nuisance.
• Advances in artificial intelligence may make virtual assistants more versatile and useful.

Read more at INVESTOPEDIA

Predictive AI in Financial Services: From Futuristic to Essential

Artificial intelligence (AI) in banking isn’t the future, it’s the present. Most industry professionals agree: 87% of financial leaders believe AI will improve banking, up from 85% earlier this year. Though predictive AI continues to bring a lot of buzz, many financial institutions are still struggling to implement it effectively.

What Predictive AI in Banking Really Does

One of the most powerful applications of artificial intelligence in banking is predictive AI modeling. By analyzing data from everyday purchase transactions and the use of financial products and services, banks and credit unions can gain insights that go far beyond what a credit report might reveal. These insights can help financial institutions predict future behaviors and preferences, allowing them to offer relevant products and services at just the right time.

Think of it as a way to anticipate life moments, like buying a car, starting a family, or needing a home equity line, and proactively offering helpful solutions. For instance, by understanding an account holder’s spending patterns, a financial institution can anticipate significant life events and proactively offer tailored financial products.

Read more at The Financial Brand

Teaching money skills to kids is a 2025 parenting essential

Cash is disappearing fast, and kids today are growing up in a world of tap-to-pay, online marketplaces and instant transactions. Without a clear understanding of how money works, your child can easily confuse spending with earning when physical currency is no longer part of daily life. Teaching money skills to kids is a 2025 parenting essential, and families who embrace this shift are giving their children a crucial head start.

Financial literacy equips individuals with the knowledge and skills to make informed decisions about their money, from setting financial goals and managing a budget to understanding interest rates, credit and long-term planning.

Read more at NBCRIGHTNOW

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How Fintech Is Bridging The Credit Gap For The World’s Unbanked

Zara, a skilled seamstress in Lahore, often called the heart of Pakistan, creates intricate wedding garments that are in high demand throughout her community. Though she has reliably paid her utility bills for 15 years and maintains a positive balance in her mobile wallet, not a single bank would approve her loan application to expand her growing business. Her predicament mirrors that of millions across Pakistan who remain invisible to the traditional banking sector.

This issue represents a pressing economic challenge in Pakistan, as well as other parts of the world: having a vast population with demonstrable financial discipline, yet for many, no pathway to formal credit. According to recent statistics, 60% of Pakistan’s adult population is integrated into the financial system, with less than 2 million having access to formal credit. Traditional banks require financial documents including salary slips, tax documents and collateral, which excludes millions in the informal sector from formal lending opportunities. As a result, these individuals have no choice but to rely on informal lenders, who are often not transparent with their terms and can exacerbate financial insecurity.

Read more at FORBES

The $12 Billion Fraud Problem and the Rise of Tokenized Payments

Online payment fraud skyrocketed to over $12 billion in the U.S. last year. But tokenization is flipping the script by replacing credit card numbers with secure, randomized tokens that are useless to hackers. This innovative solution renders stolen data worthless and slashes fraud without sacrificing CX and convenience.

For decades, making a payment online was as simple as entering a few numbers: a card number, an expiration date and a name. Then came card verification values and additional security layers. Now, depending on where you shop, your internet protocol address, device ID, and even behavioral data might be used to verify transactions.

Research from NordVPN found that stolen payment details can be purchased illegally for as little as $10. These added security measures attempt to combat fraud and secure transactions as much as possible. Payment processors know fraudsters are unlikely to have access to all the data required to impersonate a genuine customer.

Read more at The Financial Brand