The Fair Isaac Corporation — commonly known as FICO — announced in June a new version of its scoring algorithms to include buy-now-pay-later loan data. BNPL lending, more broadly, has come under criticism for encouraging credit-poor consumers to load up on debt through multiple loans. However, supporters of the FICO change say it will help people who otherwise haven’t used credit products to qualify for other, bigger loans. “This can actually give them a bridge to be able to get credit data in the credit reporting agency files,” said Julie May, vice president and general manager of B2B Scores at FICO. Independent consumer advocates also generally agree that this update could serve FICO’s intended goal of helping more people gain access to other credit products — such as credit cards, mortgages and auto loans — especially if they’re using the loans responsibly. FICO rates consumers on various factors: The amount of debt owed accounts for 30 percent of the score; timely payment of debt is another 35 percent; and the remainder incorporates factors such as the length of credit history, the credit mix, and how many new lines of credit have opened. This data is compiled by the “Big Three” credit-reporting bureaus — Experian, Equifax and TransUnion — and is then used by FICO to calculate your score. FICO uses multiple scoring models, but traditionally, they have looked at a consumer’s data as one snapshot in time. In 2020, however, FICO added a new model that looks at balance activity over two years to see whether it’s trending in a positive or negative direction. It’s this version (dubbed 10T) that will incorporate BNPL activity; its newest static model, F10, will also use this data. By adding in BNPL loans, FICO can better capture what Adam Rust, director of financial services at the Consumer Federation of America, calls “phantom debt” — debt that isn’t being reported to the credit agencies and therefore is hidden from lenders. Consumers could be in more debt than they’re able to handle, or they could be paying off purchases in a timely way. If lenders can see this data, he said, it helps them determine a borrower’s ability to repay them. Lenders will need time and money, as well as personnel training, to use the new scores, noted Ted Rossman, a credit card expert at Bankrate. FICO reports that 90 percent of lenders use some version of its models, with FICO 8 the most widely used. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two biggest government-sponsored enterprises that provide federal backing for mortgages, had planned to upgrade to FICO 10 this year, Rossman said. The agencies have since delayed the plan, but when this does happen, it “could actually be a big catalyst for change,” he added. Many things “have to go right” for this change to impact scores, Rust said. BNPL companies first have to decide whether to send in the data to the three major credit bureaus. Then, the lenders who rely on FICO scores have to decide whether it’s worth the cost to use FICO’s latest model.
HUD is seeking information about the impact that the frequent use of BNPL products may have on borrowers’ ability to meet housing-related expenses, including rent or mortgage payments
The Department of Housing and Development is seeking information about the impact that the frequent use of Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) products may have on borrowers’ ability to meet housing-related expenses, including rent or mortgage payments. Comments are due on or before August 25, 2025. HUD noted that use of BNPL services is growing rapidly and is changing how individuals manage short-term expenses. “BNPL loans essentially create ‘phantom debt’ that mortgage lenders may not be readily able to detect as needed to fully assess a borrower’s outstanding obligations or debt management behavior,” according to HUD. Interestingly, HUD did not expressly address the ramifications of BNPL arrangements with regard to the “ability to repay” requirements applicable to residential mortgage loans. HUD said that FHA’s policies would largely exclude BNPL loans from consideration in underwriting because closed-end debts are not required to be included if they will be paid off within 10 months from the date of closing and the cumulative payments of all such debts are less than or equal to 5% of the borrower’s gross monthly income. The department continued, “Understanding the intersection between BNPL lending and housing-related expenses is crucial for determining whether FHA’s current policies are adequate or if development of BNPL-specific policies are warranted for FHA to continue to support financial self-sufficiency and housing stability.”
RIA industry snapshot displays growth of wealth management in 2024, with AUM crossing $145 trillion
Registered investment advisory firms topped previous records in many key business metrics in 2024, with assets under management crossing $144.6 trillion. The number of firms registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and their AUM, clients and employees reached new heights from prior records, as shown in the below charts based on the latest yearly “Investment Adviser Industry Snapshot” by the Investment Adviser Association, a trade group, and COMPLY, a compliance firm. The overall figures, though, obscure some challenges posed by the need for organic growth rather than through M&A and asset appreciation. And any financial advisor thinking about joining an RIA or launching a new one must consider factors ranging from the macroeconomic forces affecting the entire industry to the many potential issues that could play out among their clients and employee teams, according to Julie Genjac, the vice president of applied insights for Hartford Funds, where she coaches advisory teams in practice management. “Interestingly, many new entrants into the RIA space are not immediately looking to scale or merge,” she said in an email. “Instead, they’re eager to test their independence, see how their team functions autonomously and gain firsthand experience running their own firm. While some may eventually choose to join a larger RIA for added infrastructure and support, the initial appeal of independence continues to drive a steady stream of new firms into the market. This trend underscores the enduring appeal of autonomy and customization in wealth management and suggests that, despite consolidation headlines, the entrepreneurial spirit within the industry remains strong.” Other trends fueling the RIA movement stem from that flexibility in areas like marketing, client experience and the business model of a firm, and the way that advisors are “increasingly attracted to the opportunity to retain a greater share of revenue while also having the freedom to design compensation models that suit their teams,” Genjac added. As with any study tracking RIAs, the IAA/COMPLY industry snapshot chooses specific criteria that will bring some data noise to any conclusions about the wealth management business. The report covers every type of SEC-registered firm, so the numbers include both wealth and asset management firms and those catering to retail clients and institutions.
Overhaul of rewards for their luxury credit cards by Chase and Amex means smaller issuers must fine-tune their offerings to constantly reevaluate their relationships with their customers, across all segments
When Chase and American Express unveiled plans to enhance rewards for their luxury credit cards—and raise their fees—it seemed that these lenders were focusing on the most rock-solid customer base amid economic upheaval. Though macroeconomic factors have played a part in the renewed focus on affluent customers, these moves involve much more than is apparent at first glance. Brian Riley, Director of Credit Payments at Javelin Strategy & Research, said smaller credit card issuers can take critical cues from the top issuers’ strategies. “The timing of doing this is good because they’ve got to integrate this portfolio, and all of a sudden Chase is going to lose its position as top issuer—it’s now going to be the new Capital One. With all the chaos, the timing is right for Chase and Amex to readjust this piece.” The issuers are recalibrating by addressing the three best segments in the credit card market. First are the big spenders, who can afford to make the substantial investment in a product that others receive for free. Next are the strategic buyers, who are willing to pay a high fee for the potential to reap high rewards. The final segment is responsible cardholders, those who have FICO credit scores above 720. Another attractive trait about the premium segment is that Discover doesn’t have an offering in this space. Capital One does—with its Venture X card—but the$395 annual fee card doesn’t deliver the same caliber of rewards as the Chase and Amex products do. “Capital One and Discover are middle-market players, but they do have some great accounts,” Riley said. “So here the two biggest players on the premium side aim directly at the top-end segment, so that’s a big deal. “There are subsegments within that, because you also have the smaller banks in the mix. Here, you are taking on little community banks; you’re marching into their area. You’re presumably going to be taking the top of all their customers and leaving the middle-market stuff there, so the portfolios become less sound outside of Chase and Amex.” Smaller banks won’t be the only institutions affected as Amex and Chase duke it out over premium cards. Other top issuers, such as Bank of America, Citi, and Wells Fargo, will have to shift to defend their top customers. However, the affluent cardholder base isn’t the only segment that these institutions must safeguard. “Another big thing here is that—for the first time—Chase is adding their small-business card into the mix,” Riley said. “Now, Amex has always done that in the Platinum card, but it shows you how Chase is addressing the market. That is a real big focus, and it’s a great time to be in the market because with small businesses—yes, some will fail—but many will succeed, and it’s a good choice.” Investing in the SME market is a strong strategy because typical card spending ranges from $20,000 to $50,000 per month. The arrival of Chase means other issuers must reevaluate their offerings to this sought-after segment. Because two of the strongest credit card issuers are enhancing their premier reward programs, other issuers should consider following suit. However, this should be done only if the issuer’s business allows for it. Adding 100 basis points to a card might make it more competitive but also makes it less profitable. Another area where smaller institutions can follow in the footsteps of top issuers is by benchmarking their card data. Companies like Chase and Amex are constantly adjusting their products based on market conditions, as evidenced by data from Javelin’s Card Bench, a competitive intelligence card acquisitions tool. In addition to fine-tuning their offerings, issuers should also constantly reevaluate their relationships with their customers, across all segments.
J.P. Morgan analyst is more bullish on Chime’s stock citing the company’s ability to attract, and make money off, people earning up to $100,000 a year
J.P. Morgan analyst Tien-tsin Huang issued a more bullish view on Chime Financial Inc.’s stock than a number of his peers, citing the banking services company’s ability to attract, and make money off, people earning up to $100,000 a year. “Chime cracked the code of scaling financial services as a non-bank by earning the trust of everyday Americans with a ‘low cost, no cost’ banking model that improves the financial lives of those historically burdened by fees and minimum balance requirements,” Huang wrote in a research note. Huang initiated coverage of Chime’s stock with an overweight rating and a $40-per-share price target, implying about 25% upside from current levels. The company has built the largest direct deposit base of any U.S. financial-technology company while ranking sixth as a debit-card issuer, with greater than 20% purchase volume and member growth in 2024, Huang said. “We see attractive earnings power potential as Chime grows its consumer platform of 8.6 million members … affording the firm unique insights to extend compelling low-fee liquidity/lending products, which in turn drives increased loyalty and spending,” he wrote. Looking ahead, the company is on track to speed up the release of newer services such as liquidity products that give more members earlier access to more of their pay, he said. There are 13 analysts surveyed by FactSet who cover Chime; eight are bullish, four are neutral and one is bearish.
Retailers are betting on stablecoins. Should consumers care?
Stablecoins provide retailers with a means to execute transactions instantaneously, lessen dependency on conventional banks and payment intermediaries, and potentially forge more direct connections with consumers. The e-commerce giant Shopify, for example, already allows merchants to accept USDC, through integrations with Coinbase and Stripe. Walmart is reportedly investigating similar options. Concurrently, Fiserv and other companies are creating stablecoin infrastructure designed for smaller banks and fintech firms. There are additional advantages as well. Through programmable features, merchants can create customizable rewards, cashback in tokens, or temporary discounts triggered by wallet activities. Without a clear value proposition for consumers during checkout, even well-crafted systems could find it hard to gain traction. Nevertheless, there is ample opportunity for innovation. If merchants can reinvest even a small portion of the $187 billion they save on swipe fees into customer rewards and incentives, that formula might begin to shift. Consider Shopify, which now offers 1% cashback in USDC when customers use stablecoins for payment. Coinbase is reportedly developing systems that would support loyalty programs, credit products, and more, which are linked to stablecoin wallets. If retailers can combine stablecoin payments with enticing rewards, faster refunds, personalized offers, and increased privacy, the value proposition becomes much more attractive.
Financial services marketers must adopt a whole-brain approach that blends emotional storytelling with strategic insight by using traditional AI for data and analytics and gen AI for crafting personalized campaigns and customer journeys through scripting ads, designing banners, and optimizing for SEO
Until recently, marketers could only use the calculative or predictive capabilities of AI. However, gen AI allows marketers to create content and do research at a scale and speed we’ve never seen before. This opens new opportunities to drive innovation. Gen AI is supercharging both the analytical and creative dimensions of marketing. This means marketers now have the tools to automate important but tedious tasks like content production, freeing up time to focus on strategic decisions. Imagine having your AI assistant develop the first draft of an entire campaign — scripting ads, designing banners, and optimizing for SEO — while you, the marketer, focus on the bigger picture: refining the message, shaping the narrative and connecting with your audience emotionally. For financial services marketers, gen AI can streamline campaign personalization across highly regulated products, draft copy that adheres to compliance guardrails and surface insights from vast pools of transaction and behavioral data — transforming what used to be bottlenecks into creative springboards. For example, a bank marketer can use gen AI to create personalized financial wellness journeys for customers, based on predictive models drawn from transaction data.
Beep launches NAVI fully autonomous public transit system in Florida; transit-integrated AV mobility services at scale, can operate and maintain fully autonomous public transportation systems
Beep, provider of autonomous shared mobility solutions, has begun operating the Jacksonville Transportation Authority’s (JTA) autonomous vehicle service, called NAVI (Neighborhood Autonomous Vehicle Innovation). NAVI is the first fully autonomous public transportation system in the U.S. Backed by a five-year O&M contract, Beep will operate and maintain the NAVI service, which is part of the JTA’s groundbreaking Ultimate Urban Circulator (U2C) program. In this first phase of the JTA’s U2C program, Beep will operate and maintain a customized fleet of fourteen electric, autonomous, Buy America and ADA compliant Ford E-Transit vehicles integrated with automated driving system (ADS) capability from Oxa. Beep’s proprietary technology will facilitate both vehicle deployment and command center operations from the JTA’s new Autonomous Innovation Center (AIC). The company says that the AIC is a first-of-its-kind for autonomous transit. Beep’s AV-agnostic supervision and management platform (AutonomOS™) enables operators and agencies to deliver transit-integrated AV mobility services at scale, providing for vehicle and cabin supervision, fleet orchestration, and integrated workflow management. The vehicles will be deployed along the Bay Street Innovation Corridor, a 3.5-mile route in downtown Jacksonville with twelve stops from the Central Business Core to the Sports and Entertainment District. The routing aims to encourage downtown revitalization.
UiPath CTO details “Controlled agency” concept that can help delegate work across different AI services by embedding AI agents within structured workflows, where deterministic tasks are handled by robots and non-deterministic tasks are delegated to agents
An approach known as “controlled agency” can help us determine who (or what) does what in the workplace. In AI world, controlled agency is becoming a key mechanism for delegating work across different automation and intelligence services in much the same way. Working to apply this precise principle across his firm’s estate of technologies is Raghu Malpani in his role as chief technology officer at agentic automation company UiPath. “UiPath approaches controlled agency by embedding AI agents within structured workflows, where deterministic tasks are handled by [software] robots and only non-deterministic tasks are delegated to agents. This ensures agents are used where adaptive decision-making is actually needed. Agents are designed to be single-minded i.e. focused on narrow, well-scoped objectives. Complex workflows are composed of multiple such agents alongside deterministic automation, preserving clarity and modularity.” “We’ve built a platform that unifies AI, RPA and human decision making so companies can deliver smarter, more resilient workflows without added complexity. As models and chips commoditize, the value of AI moves up the stack to orchestration and intelligence.” UiPath Maestro is the orchestration layer that automates, models and optimizes complex business processes end-to-end with built-in process intelligence and key performance indicator monitoring to enable continuous optimization. Maestro provides the centralized oversight needed to scale AI-powered agents across systems and teams.
Genesis AI building a general-purpose model to enable robots to automate a wide range of repetitive tasks from lab work to housekeeping by using synthetic data capable of accurately modeling the physical world
Genesis AI, a startup that aims to build a foundational model for powering all kinds of robots, has emerged from stealth with a giant $105 million seed round co-led by Eclipse Ventures and Khosla Ventures. The startup wants to build a general-purpose model that will enable robots to automate a wide range of repetitive tasks, from lab work to housekeeping. Genesis is turning to synthetic data, which it generates using a proprietary physics engine that, it says, is capable of accurately modeling the physical world. Genesis’ synthetic data engine originated from an academic project that Xian led in collaboration with researchers from 18 universities. Several participants from that project have since joined Genesis, making up its current staff of over 20 researchers who specialize in robotics, machine learning, and graphics. Genesis claims its proprietary simulation engine allows it to develop models faster, a distinct advantage over competitors who rely on Nvidia’s software. Genesis is developing its synthetic data and building the foundational model across two offices, in Silicon Valley and Paris. As the next milestone, Genesis plans to release its model to the robotics community by the end of the year.