Whether as a standalone store or a kiosk inside your current location/s,

El Vecino provides a turnkey solution with a strong brand, built-in provider network, and all the support you need.

Subprime Auto Loan Delinquencies Boom, Spurred by Rates and Car Prices

As delinquencies rise among below-prime customers, many auto lenders are emphasizing loans to superprime borrowers. But yesterday's loans are still out there.

Higher interest rates, higher monthly payments, and increasing stress on many consumers’ wallets are combining to push up overall auto loan delinquency rates—especially among subprime borrowers. However, the delinquency trend has multiple aspects and its severity varies considerably among among the slices of the industry.

Serious delinquency rates are up for four key consumer credit categories, as shown in the TransUnion chart below that shows quarterly trends through yearend 2024. These credit categories include auto loans, bank cards, mortgages and unsecured personal loans. "Serious delinquency" is defined as 60+ days past due for auto and unsecured loans and as 90+ days past due for cards and home loans.

Read more at The Financial Brand

Pay-by-Bank Interest Jumps 72% With Incentives, New Report Shows

Despite its potential, pay by bank, or open banking payments, remains a largely untapped opportunity, but a new report suggests that the right incentives could be the key to unlocking widespread consumer adoption.

The collaboration between PYMNTS Intelligence and Trustly, titled “What Consumers Need for Pay by Bank to Catch On,” explores U.S. consumers’ current awareness of and inclination towards using pay by bank.

The study shows that strategic incentives, particularly discounts and cash-back offers, significantly boost interest even among the initially resistant. The report, based on a census-balanced survey of 2,225 U.S. consumers conducted in July, underscores that while current usage remains modest, future growth hinges on effectively engaging key demographics and highlighting the applicability of pay by bank beyond traditional retail transactions.

Read more at PYMNTS.COM

Have a tax law question?

Our #IRS Interactive Tax Assistant has answers.

Watch this short video to learn more:

https://youtu.be/y6HkaBkdKdU

Find out what and when income is taxable and nontaxable, including

employee wages, fringe benefits, barter income, and royalties.

See #IRS Publication 525: www.irs.gov/pub525

Jose L. Santiago

Public Affairs Specialist

Tax Outreach, Partnership and Education

Email: jose.l.santiago@irs.gov

Visa to Launch New Unified Checkout and Fraud Detection Solutions

Visa has unveiled three new value-added services designed to make accepting payments easier and more secure.

The services are meant for acquirers, payment facilitators, retailers, marketplaces and shops, the company said in a Thursday (April 3) press release emailed to PYMNTS.

With Authorize.net 2.0, Visa has reimagined its Authorize.net by adding a streamlined user interface, artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities, improved dashboards for management, and support for in-person card readers and tap to phone, according to the release. This enhanced service will be available in the U.S. in the second quarter and in additional countries in 2026.

Unified Checkout is a new experience that can be launched in a few hours and will orchestrate more than 25 card and alternative payment options, enabling merchants to accept more payment types and boost their eCommerce conversion rates with an intuitive checkout experience, the release said. It will be available in the U.S. and in pilot state in additional markets in the third quarter.

Read more at PYMNTS.COM

Opportunity Grows in Home Equity, And So Does Competition

Record home equity levels — and card debt — are prompting banks and credit unions to ramp up promotion of equity loans and lines of credit. But technologically savvy competitors are taking away crucial market share.

Several factors are expanding opportunities for banks and credit unions to build their home equity lending business. But lenders also face eroding market share to nontraditional competitors, many of which have demonstrated greater agility.

The potential expansion in opportunity also has a lot of moving parts — and it takes place against an uncertain economic backdrop, and a hazy outlook for future interest rates.

Nonetheless, lenders have been placing their chips on growth. "From 2023 to 2024, total home equity line of credit marketing spend rose 130%, with email and direct mail volumes up 201% and 125% respectively," according to a report by Comperemedia, a Mintel company, which tracks ad spending. "Early 2025 data suggests this momentum is only accelerating."

Read more at The Financial Brand

Consumers Say They Are Happier with Their Banks — For Now

Nervous consumers aren't blaming banks for their economic stress and even see some reasons to like them more. Yet banks continue to neglect key practices that could hold primary accounts.

In times like these, consumers people can take out their concerns on convenient targets, like their banks. Yet new J.D. Power research indicates that customers are actually happier with their primary banks.

In the J.D. Power 2025 Retail Banking Satisfaction Study, retail banks had an overall satisfaction score of 655 — out of a possible 1,000 —a significant year over year 11-point increase. Further, banks’ rating on the standard of "completely supports me in challenging times" is up by four percentage points.

"This is despite a lot of real-world challenges that are impacting people’s finances. Their deposits are eroding, their investments are declining," says Jennifer White, senior director of banking and payments intelligence, in an interview with The Financial Brand.

Read more at The Financial Brand

Customer-Centric Billing Systems Yield Faster Payments and Strategic Advantages

In a world increasingly driven by efficiency, the way businesses handle invoicing and billing is undergoing a quiet, digital revolution.

It couldn’t be happening at a better time. For decades, paper-based billing systems have burdened companies with excessive operational costs. The expense of printing, mailing and manually processing invoices adds up quickly, and doesn’t even scratch the surface of the efficiency bleed businesses can suffer.

PYMNTS Intelligence in the March 2025 “Digital Financial Services Tracker®” finds that electronic bill presentment and payment (EBPP) systems are revolutionizing the billing landscape by automating invoicing and payment processes. 

These systems significantly reduce manual errors, expedite billing cycles, and improve cash flow predictability. By transitioning to EBPP, businesses can lower processing costs per bill to $2.78 and reduce processing time to just 3.1 days.

Read more at PYMNTS.COM

Validating Checking Accounts Gives the Good Guys a Chance

Late last year, PYMNTS Intelligence reported that 28% of payments executives were seeing an increase in fraud and risk management uncertainties, and a commensurate percentage saw losses exceeding half a million dollars in the preceding 12 months.

It’s no surprise to Eric Stratman, senior director of analytics and insights at ValidiFI, who told PYMNTS in an interview that many firms grapple with outdated risk assessment processes. Because of those legacy systems, they transact online and across ACH networks playing a futile game of catch-up with scammers.

“Fraudsters are constantly evolving” as they shift to different attack vectors depending on the “use case” of the customer and the payment being made, Stratman told PYMNTS.

Read more at PYMNTS.COM

Zelle app no longer offering money transfer services. Here's what it means for users

The mobile payment app Zelle no longer allows users to send and receive money transfers. However, the platform's services remain available.

The ability to transfer money through the Zelle mobile app became unavailable on Tuesday, as announced by the company in October 2024. Now, Zelle is only available through "more than 2,200 banks and credit unions" in the U.S. that offer the platform through their websites or mobile apps, according to the Zelle website.

The decision came as only about 2% of Zelle transactions were made through the standalone Zelle app, the company reported last year.

In December 2024, the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed a lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo for failing to protect consumers from alleged "widespread fraud" through Zelle. Customers named in the lawsuit reported losing more than $870 million over a seven-year period.

Read more at MARKETS TODAY

Credit unions offer security and stability, even in the toughest economic times

With economic uncertainty rising and recession worries echoing through the news and daily conversations, average folks are increasingly concerned about how to keep their money safe and maintain their financial stability.

One clear answer is credit unions. Credit unions are member-owned, not-for-profit financial cooperatives built to serve working people, families, and local communities. In an increasingly volatile economy, consumers can trust credit unions to keep their money safe and put their well-being first.

Here’s why:

Not-for-Profit Structure: Unlike big banks, credit unions are member-owned, and not-for-profit. This means they serve their members — the local folks with checking and savings accounts, loans, and mortgages — not Wall Street shareholders demanding quarterly profits. All credit union earnings are returned to their members through lower loan rates, higher savings yields, reduced fees, and even dividend payments.

Read more at CUInsight

10 Cash Flow Mistakes the Middle Class Is Making That Prevent Them From Becoming Upper Class

A lot of people in the middle class feel like they’re just one step away from breaking into the upper class but can’t quite get there.

And honestly, a lot of it comes down to a few cash flow mistakes that are holding them back.

These are simple things we don’t always think about, but they can make a huge difference in how fast we build wealth.

Here’s a look at the top cash flow mistakes that might be stopping you from leveling up financially — and how to fix them.

Read more at YAHOO FINANCE

Financial literacy is the highest in these US states, according to report

The Brief

• A new report from Wallethub found that some states appear to be more financially literate than others, with Minnesota ranking the highest and Arkansas last.
• Minnesota's financial education is "baked into the K-12 curriculum," the report said.
• "Because financial literacy is so essential, states should prioritize teaching it from a young age," one analyst said.

The ability to understand and use different financial skills, like earning income, budgeting, saving, investing, and managing credit, is key to making informed decisions about money and achieving one’s financial goals. 

And with mounting credit card debt among Americans and defaults soaring to record highs, experts say financial education is important to try and improve these trends. 

Read more at FOX

Blue-collar workers are less satisfied at work, less attached to their jobs than other U.S. workers

Blue-collar workers have been at or near the center of much public discussion in recent years, from their political leanings to their wages and cultural impact.

A recent Pew Research Center survey finds that these workers – who, by our definition, make up about 27% of the U.S. workforce – stand out from other employed Americans in several ways when it comes to how they see their jobs.

Blue-collar workers are markedly less satisfied with their jobs than other workers. They feel less respected, are less attached to their jobs, and are more likely to view their jobs as just a way to get by, rather than as a career. Younger blue-collar workers and women in blue-collar jobs are especially likely to hold these views.

Read more at The Pew Research Center

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Fintech companies caught up in tariff turmoil

Financial technology companies like Robinhood (HOOD) and buy now, pay later provider Affirm (AFRM) have been caught in the whirlwind of President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs, sending shares sharply downward amid fears about worsening consumer finances.

Global markets have been battered since Trump last week introduced a new baseline 10% U.S. tariff on goods from all economies. Investors fear that the duties could lead to higher prices, weaker demand and potentially a global recession.

That could spell trouble for fintech companies, many of which rely heavily on consumers to be able to repay loans and deploy extra income toward stocks and other investments.

Read more at REUTERS

5 Key Considerations When Designing Your Next Banking Website

Building and delivering a new website these days requires both a clear-eyed strategy and ruthless prioritization. Focus on the business impacts that the site should deliver, understand the expectations of your customers, and pick the right technologies (and partners) for the job.

If you’re thinking that this is the year you’re going to redesign your website, it’s essential that you go into this incredibly important project with the right goals, clear expectations, and internal consensus. Websites for banks and credit unions can be simply a gateway to your online banking platform – or they can be a powerful channel that attracts, communicates and converts. Institutions that expect more than just a pretty site and have a strategic plan in place will get more out of it.

So, if you want to ensure that this critical channel delivers everything it can for your institution, here are five key considerations for every website redesign.

Consideration 1: Treat This With the Importance It Deserves

Read more at The Financial Brand