According to a new survey, more than half of Americans (62%) said that their credit card debt increased compared to before the global pandemic began. Additionally, 52% of respondents said that they increased their credit limits to support their increase in spending. But even as credit card debt rises, cardholders’ spending habits are not slowing down, and overall sales are increasing in many industries. In June, the Consumer Price Index from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics surged 0.9%. [Fox Business]
Banks Quietly Curb Overdraft Fees, Long A Target for Democrats
Some banks are retooling their overdraft policies or eliminating the fees altogether on their own, moves that could help lower-income Americans save money. In June, Ally announced it was getting rid of overdraft fees, while last month Synovus Financial said it’s looking to rely less on those fees for its checking accounts. They follow PNC, TD Bank, Fifth Third, Huntington Bancshares, and Regions Financial, all of which earlier this year limited overdraft fees by introducing new accounts or services or curbing when the fees are assessed. Their efforts come as Democrats push the Overdraft Protection Act, which would prevent institutions from reordering transactions to increase fees and would limit overdraft charges to one a month or six a year. [Yahoo Money]
Senate Democrats Want to Cap Interest Rates on Loans at 36%
In an effort to prevent consumers from ending up in payday-loan debt traps where they renew small loans over and over—-paying more in fees over time than the original loan amount—-Senate Democrats reintroduced legislation that would cap consumer loan interest rates at 36%. The bill, dubbed the Veterans and Consumers Fair Credit Act, builds on the Military Lending Act enacted in 2006, expanding the 36% interest rate cap to all consumer loans, including payday and installment loans. [Fortune]
