News & Resources

U.S. short-term lending saturated

Apr 02, 2012 Phil Burgess

While short-term lending operations get a bad rap from some critics because of their high interest fees, Investor Place notes that loanees rarely get into "cycles of debt," and that 94 percent of all loans are paid on time and in full. Over the past few years, increased American debt has led some larger banks to offer a modified version of short term lending, with fewer fees and the ability for consumers to have their paychecks directly deposited. This also allows the bank to get paid immediately. Because short term lenders don't have this luxury, they require higher default rates. Today, the short-term lending market in the U.S. is saturated, and growth is now being driven by international expansion. For instance, the news source points to a large Spartanburg, South Carolina, operation that was recently bought out by a Mexican company for $700 million. Elsewhere, France24 notes that short term lending has grown in popularity in the United Kingdom, with ads placed on TV, radio and buses encouraging the use of short-term loans for everything from "beer binges to taking a taxi to see a dying relative."