OTHER BANKING NEWS
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Join The Fight to Close the Stablecoin Loophole
ABA will hold a free webinar for bankers on Monday, Jan. 12, at 2 p.m. ET on its ongoing efforts to block the crypto industry’s bid to exploit a loophole in stablecoin legislation that threatens to drain bank deposits and damage local lending. Find out how you can join bankers from across the country by adding your bank’s important voice to this urgent policy debate in Washington.
To learn more, visit: https://www.aba.com/training-events/online-training/join-the-fight-to-close-the-stablecoin-loophole
CFPB Issues Report on Credit Card Market
Purchase volume on consumer credit cards increased to $3.6 trillion in 2024, up from $3.2 trillion two years prior, according to the CFPB’s recently released report on the credit card market.
The CFPB is required by law to prepare a report on the credit card market every two years. The most recent report analyzed data from 2024 and found that annual growth in credit card spending was around 5%. Nearly all that growth was attributable to cardholders with credit scores in the range of 720 to 799.
Credit card balances exceeded $1.2 trillion in 2024, according to the report. Annual growth in credit card balances was about 6% at the end of 2024, closer to pre-pandemic levels, after having reached 17% in the first quarter of 2022. The CFPB also found that credit card delinquencies and charge-offs reached historically high levels in early 2024 but have since fallen to pre-pandemic levels. By year’s end, delinquency rates for both general-purpose and private-label cards were 3% and 3.8%, respectively.
Cash back credit cards now make up the leading share of all general purpose accounts. Also, in 2024, cardholders disputed $9.8 billion in credit card charges, resulting in $5.9 billion in chargebacks.
To view the report, visit: https://www.consumerfinance.gov/data-research/research-reports/the-consumer-credit-card-market-2025/
CRA Small-Bank Asset-Size Thresholds Updated For 2026
The Federal Reserve and FDIC have released the updated Community Reinvestment Act “small-bank” and “intermediate small-bank” asset-size thresholds for 2026. The thresholds ticked up slightly for the coming year.
CRA regulations establish the criteria by which relevant agencies assess a financial institution’s record of meeting the credit needs of its entire community, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods. The asset-size thresholds are adjusted annually based on the average change in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, which is a measure of inflation. The CPI-W for the period ending in November increased 2.51%.
The small-bank asset-size threshold is for an institution that, as of Dec. 31 of either of the prior two calendar years, had assets of less than $1.649 billion. The threshold for 2025 was $1.609 billion. The updated threshold for an intermediate small bank is for an institution that, as of Dec. 31 of either of the prior two calendar years. had assets of at least $412 million and less than $1.649 billion. The 2025 threshold was at least $402 million and less than $1.609 billion.
The updated thresholds took effect Jan. 1.
To read more, visit: https://www.fdic.gov/federal-register-notice.pdf
CFPB Opens Filing Period For 2025 HMDA Data
The filing period for Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data collected in 2025 began on Jan. 1, according to the CFPB.
Banks can use the HMDA platform to upload their loan/application registers, review edits, certify the accuracy and completeness of the data, and submit data for the filing year in compliance with the reporting requirements. CFPB said submissions will be considered timely if received on or before March 2. Users will receive a confirmation email upon submission of their data, which will be sent to the email account of the user that sent the submission.
CFPB said that the beta platform to test submissions will remain available but that no data submitted on the beta platform will be considered for compliance with HMDA data reporting requirements.
To access the filing page, visit: https://ffiec.cfpb.gov/filing/2025/