
What We Do / Research
Small Dollar Credit
Developing High-Quality, Small-Dollar Credit Products
Every year, an increasing number of Americans are turning to alternative credit sources for quick access to cash. An estimated 15 million people annually use small-dollar credit (SDC) products to meet their financial needs. And tens of millions more rely on subprime credit cards, checking account overdrafts and other expensive forms of credit when their access to traditional credit is limited. SDC products, sometimes called microloans, refer to payday, pawn, deposit advance, auto title, and installment loans, typically under $5,000.
Reliable access to small loans is vital to the financial success of millions of U.S. consumers, yet many SDC products carry terms that put borrowers at risk of becoming trapped in cycles of mounting debt. We recognize a critical need to develop high-quality financial services innovations that can help meet this demand for short-term liquidity while reducing the risks posed by many small-dollar credit products.
CFSI has undertaken extensive consumer research to examine the needs, decisions, and experiences of SDC consumers. Additionally, in consultation with a wide variety of industry stakeholders and consumer advocates, we have used our Compass Principles framework to develop a set of guidelines to define what a high-quality small-dollar credit product looks like.
Small Dollar Credit
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Small Dollar Credit and Financial Health: A Policy Perspective
The Financial Health Network wrote this Policy Perspective that draws on our past small-dollar credit work to inform the conversation around recent regulatory actions.
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Comment Letter: Small-Dollar Lending
The Center for Financial Services Innovation responds to the FDIC’s Request for Information on Small-Dollar Lending.
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2017 Financially Underserved Market Size Study
The Financial Health Network presents our 2017 Financially Underserved Market Size Study that illustrates the growing opportunity to address the needs of financially underserved consumers and identifies significant trends...
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Secured Credit Cards: Military and Veteran Service Members
Secured credit cards can limit service members’ financial vulnerabilities.
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Secured Credit Cards: Rural, Underserved Communities
Americans in rural communities are losing access to locally available, affordable financial services and products.
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The Financial Health Network Comment Letter to the CFPB’s Request for Information Regarding Use of Alternative Data and Modeling Techniques in the Credit Process
The Financial Health Network submitted its response to the CFPB's request for information regarding use of alternative data and modeling techniques in the credit process on February 16, 2017....
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2016 Financially Underserved Market Size Study
The Financial Health Network and Core Innovation Capital present this 6th annual market analysis to illustrate the size of the opportunity to address the needs of financially underserved consumers...
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The Financial Health Network Comment Letter on Payday, Vehicle Title, and Certain High-Cost Installment Loans
The Financial Health Network is submitting this letter in response to the request for comments on “Payday, Vehicle Title, and Certain High-Cost Installment Loans,” issued by the Consumer Financial...
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Dispatch from D.C. — September 2016 – Full Report
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Dispatch from D.C. — September 2016 Executive Summary
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