Experian has launched a self-service digital onboarding platform designed to provide small-volume U.S. lenders with streamlined access to consumer credit reports.
The post Experian Streamlines Credit Report Access for Small Lenders appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "Experian has launched a self-service digital onboarding platform designed to provide small-volume U.S. lenders with streamlined access to consumer credit reports.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nThe new Experian Express enables small lenders such as community banks and credit unions to digitally credential, onboard and access these credit reports through a fully online process, the global data and technology company said in a Tuesday (April 7) press release.\nThe platform allows quicker and more efficient access to Experian credit data for lenders that have lower-volume credit report access needs, according to the release.\n\u201cSmall lenders play a vital role in expanding consumer access to credit,\u201d Molly Poppie, chief product and analytics officer for Experian, said in the release. \u201cDriven by our commitment to financial inclusion, Experian Express brings digital onboarding to a traditionally manual process, giving lenders a faster, more efficient way to obtain the credit insights they need confidently extend credit and support consumers across the communities they serve.\u201d\nExperian Express is the latest of several new offerings the company has announced in recent months.\nThe company said in February that it expanded its data and identity assets by adding over 10 billion email addresses worldwide with the acquisition of AtData, a data and intelligence company employing \u201cemail insights technology.\u201d\n\u201cAtData\u2019s real-time data signals, combined with Experian\u2019s extensive consumer data, analytics and decisioning platforms, mean clients can more confidently identify, authenticate and engage consumers across digital channels,\u201d Experian said at the time.\nIn November 2025, Experian introduced a new model called \u201cCredit + Cashflow Score\u201d that combines its credit, alternative and trended data, and consumer-permissioned banking information into a single score.\nCombining Experian\u2019s data with information \u201cabout how a consumer is managing their finances through open banking is the future of underwriting,\u201d Scott Brown, group president for financial and marketing services for Experian North America, said in a Nov. 10 press release.\nDuring the same month, Experian launched a collaboration with embedded lending platform Lendflow, saying the partnership is designed to offer small businesses access to \u201ccarefully selected and vetted\u201d lenders around the country. It offers business owners a lending marketplace embedded directly within Experian\u2019s app.\n\r\n\r\nThe post Experian Streamlines Credit Report Access for Small Lenders appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-04-07T15:05:27-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-04-07T15:05:27-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Experian.jpg", "tags": [ "credit reports", "Experian", "lenders", "loans", "News", "PYMNTS News", "What's Hot", "Loans" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3623048", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/loans/2026/social-media-platforms-turn-users-into-borrowers/", "title": "TikTok and Meta Eye a Bigger Role in Financial Services", "content_html": "The front door to financial services is widening to include social media platforms, marked by payments integrations and new movements into lending.
The post TikTok and Meta Eye a Bigger Role in Financial Services appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "The front door to financial services is widening to include social media platforms, marked by payments integrations and new movements into lending.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nPYMNTS Intelligence data shows that consumers engage across multiple digital activities throughout the day, including communication, shopping and banking, often within the same device and session, which means that financial decisions are increasingly made inside broader digital routines. That change in behavior is giving platforms that control attention a direct path into everyday financial life.\nThe pattern is consistent across platforms. Payments establish presence. Lending builds on top of that.\nTikTok\u2019s latest push into Brazil illustrates the model. As we reported this week, the company has applied for licenses that would allow it to offer digital wallets, move funds and facilitate lending connections between users and financial partners. The move places both payments and credit inside the app experience. And it brings to mind earlier efforts in Asia, where its parent company ByteDance launched Douyin Pay to support in-app commerce.\nElsewhere, Meta\u2019s exploration of stablecoin-based payments is designed to enable value to move within its ecosystem, particularly across borders, which would support commerce across Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. Payments infrastructure has historically been a precursor to credit expansion, because transaction data provides the signals lenders rely upon.\nOther platforms have already demonstrated how this sequence plays out. In China, WeChat Pay and Alipay moved from payments into consumer and small business lending, using transaction histories to inform credit decisions. In the United States, platforms such as PayPal and Block have followed a similar path, embedding working capital and installment lending into merchant and consumer flows.\nCommerce via Platforms \nThe lending opportunity depends on commerce activity that is already happening inside these platforms.\nTikTok Shop has expanded rapidly in multiple markets, allowing users to discover products through short-form video and complete purchases without leaving the app. Instagram has integrated checkout features that allow brands and creators to sell directly within posts and stories. Pinterest has built shoppable pins that link inspiration to transaction. These experiences compress the path from discovery to purchase.\nPYMNTS Intelligence data on influencer commerce highlights both the potential and the constraint. More than half of U.S. consumers have made purchases based on influencer recommendations, but most still consult additional sources before completing a transaction. That behavior suggests that while platforms can drive intent, they do not yet fully control trust, which becomes more important as transactions move from purchases to borrowing.\nBrazil Paves the Path Toward Scale\nBrazil provides a useful test case because the underlying infrastructure is already widely in place.\nDigital payments are widely adopted, with roughly 94% of consumers using them as part of everyday financial activity, and mobile devices serve as a primary interface for commerce.\nTikTok\u2019s planned expansion into Brazil is a play toward inserting a widening berth of financial services into a market where consumers are already accustomed to managing money through digital channels and where social media usage is among the highest globally.\nDistribution and Lending \nThe shift toward embedded lending changes how competition is defined.\nTraditional lenders compete on pricing, underwriting and product features. Social platforms compete on distribution and engagement. They observe user behavior continuously, including how people shop, interact and transact, which allows them to introduce financial products at moments when intent is already established.\n\r\n\r\nThe post TikTok and Meta Eye a Bigger Role in Financial Services appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-04-03T11:19:20-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-04-05T21:22:16-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/TikTok-social-media1.jpg", "tags": [ "digital transformation", "Featured News", "Lending", "loans", "News", "PYMNTS News", "Social Media", "TikTok", "Loans" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3620808", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/loans/2026/treasury-and-insurance-regulators-convening-to-tackle-private-credit-fears/", "title": "Treasury and Insurance Regulators Convening to Tackle Private Credit Fears", "content_html": "The U.S. Treasury\u00a0will meet with insurance regulators to discuss the private credit industry.
The post Treasury and Insurance Regulators Convening to Tackle Private Credit Fears appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "The U.S. Treasury\u00a0will meet with insurance regulators to discuss the private credit industry.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nThose meetings will\u00a0kick off next month\u00a0and involve domestic and international insurance regulators, the department said in a Wednesday (April 1) press release.\n\u201cThis first series of meetings will allow participants to survey recent market events, emerging risks, risk management practices, and outlooks for the sector,\u201d per the release.\nThe meetings will also \u201cfacilitate greater regular communication with the state insurance regulators, who serve as the insurance industry\u2019s primary regulators, and lay the groundwork for sustained close collaboration,\u201d the announcement said.\nThe announcement follows a report Sunday (March 29) from Reuters that the government was planning on meeting with insurance regulators amid concerns about liquidity, transparency and lending discipline in the\u00a0$2 trillion private credit industry.\nThat report cited comments Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made in February to the Economic Club of Dallas, where he argued that when assets shift from private credit lenders into regulated financial institutions, such as banks, pension funds or captive insurance companies, \u201cTreasury gets involved.\u201d\nAs covered here in March, the\u00a0debate around private credit\u00a0has sharpened recently as bank filings and executive commentary highlight the scale and potential vulnerabilities of this sector.\nPrivate credit funds have drawn in investors looking for higher yields than those available in public bond markets. The asset class exists largely outside the transparency standards applied to traditional banking or public debt markets. Loans are normally held in private portfolios and valued internally by the funds that originate them, which can mask deteriorating credit conditions until stress becomes impossible to ignore.\n\u201cThe overarching concern may not herald an imminent crisis, but the structure of the market could amplify shocks if credit conditions deteriorate,\u201d PYMNTS wrote.\nA look at bank disclosures offers some insight into the sector. Lending by banks to\u00a0non-deposit financial institutions, a category that includes private credit funds, has risen sharply in recent years. Data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis shows that bank loans to these institutions reached roughly $1.14 trillion last year.\nPYMNTS wrote last week about a\u00a0shift in the industry, where funding access now depends on how loans are financed after origination. Market signals show capital moving to structured credit even as liquidity stress has shown up in fund-based lending.\n\u201cIn short, private credit is no longer a contest of who can originate loans. It is becoming a test of who can move them,\u201d that report said.\n\r\n\r\nThe post Treasury and Insurance Regulators Convening to Tackle Private Credit Fears appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-04-02T15:06:35-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-04-02T21:03:36-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/treasury.jpg", "tags": [ "B2B", "B2B Payments", "Insurance", "loans", "News", "private credit", "PYMNTS News", "regulations", "Treasury Department", "What's Hot", "What's Hot In B2B", "Loans" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3619755", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/loans/2026/businesses-use-tariff-refund-claims-as-collateral/", "title": "Businesses Use Tariff Refund Claims as Collateral\u00a0", "content_html": "Businesses are reportedly considering using tariff refund claims as collateral as they await government reimbursement.
The post Businesses Use Tariff Refund Claims as Collateral\u00a0 appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "Businesses are reportedly considering using tariff refund claims as collateral as they await government reimbursement.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nThat\u2019s according to a\u00a0report\u00a0Thursday (April 2) from Reuters, which characterizes the trend as an indication that importers might be able to meet their short-term funding needs using their claims before they collect refunds from the outlawed \u201cLiberation Day\u201d tariffs.\nThe White House announced those tariffs a year ago, leading to pushback from the business world, which sued the administration. The Supreme Court sided with those businesses earlier this year,\u00a0declaring the tariffs illegal.\nNow, companies are waiting on roughly\u00a0$166 billion in refunds, though the Trump administration has said it could take time to process all the claims.\nThat\u2019s where financial services firms come in, Reuters said. These companies purchased refund claims from importers worried about ever getting reimbursed, no matter the Supreme Court ruling. Some companies want to use their claims as \u200bcollateral for loans, instead of selling them at a steep discount to a buyer, said an attorney and a broker advising clients in this area.\n\u201cThere\u2019s \u2060a lot of money looking to be deployed,\u201d\u00a0Raniero D\u2019Aversa, partner and chair of law firm\u00a0Orrick\u2019s restructuring team, who is advising buyers, sellers, investors and lenders in the transactions, told Reuters. \u201cYou’re paying \u200binterest, but you\u2019re not giving away 50% of your claim. You still own the claim.\u201d\nHe said commercial banks, hedge funds, and private credit funds are all hoping to lend against these claims as collateral. However, the report added, importers could still be stuck with the loan if their refund doesn’t come through.\nIn related news, PYMNTS wrote this week about the\u00a0one-year anniversary\u00a0of Liberation Day, and the uncertainty that resulted from the tariffs, with the past 12 months establishing a pattern for middle-market companies.\n\u201cA policy shock has evolved into a durable operating condition, where volatility is arguably the only constant, shaping how businesses plan, invest and manage risk,\u201d the report said.\nThe weeks following the tariffs saw a jump in the share of goods product leaders who reported high levels of uncertainty due to supply chain disruptions, rising from 11% in March to 33% in April. Confidence, meanwhile,\u00a0\u201cdeteriorated with unusual speed,\u201d\u00a0the report added.\nThe number of goods product leaders who felt highly certain they could manage supply chain disruption dropped from 40% in February to 37% in March to just 5% in April.\n\u201cSubsequent reports confirmed that this was not a temporary adjustment,\u201d PYMNTS wrote. \u201cFirms operating in high-uncertainty environments reported no meaningful confidence in their ability to adapt.\u201d\n\r\n\r\nThe post Businesses Use Tariff Refund Claims as Collateral\u00a0 appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-04-02T10:26:22-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-04-02T10:26:22-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Tariffs-ruling1.jpg", "tags": [ "Lending", "loans", "News", "PYMNTS News", "tariffs", "What's Hot", "Loans" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3609601", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/loans/2026/private-credit-unease-prompts-treasury-insurance-regulators-meetings/", "title": "Private Credit Unease Prompts Treasury-Insurance Regulators Meetings", "content_html": "The\u00a0Treasury Department\u00a0is reportedly planning talks with insurance regulators about the private credit market.
The post Private Credit Unease Prompts Treasury-Insurance Regulators Meetings appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "The\u00a0Treasury Department\u00a0is reportedly planning talks with insurance regulators about the private credit market.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nThe talks between the Treasury and domestic and international insurance regulators are being prompted by concerns about liquidity, transparency and lending discipline in the\u00a0$2 trillion\u00a0private credit space, Reuters\u00a0reported\u00a0Sunday (March 29).\nWhile those worries have been mounting in recent weeks, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had been planning to consult with insurance regulators since January.\nThe sources added that the first of the meetings could be announced as soon as Wednesday (April 1), with the outcome aimed at improving regulatory oversight of private credit lenders as they increasingly interact with\u00a0regulated \u200bfinancial institutions.\nWhile the treasury has no regulatory control over the insurance sector, Bessent hopes to make his department a \u201cconvening authority, resource and forum\u201d for all 50 U.S. state insurance regulators, the Reuters report said.\nSources said that the department is eager to get regulators\u2019 feedback on the increasing use of \u200bfund-level leverage, the consistency of private credit ratings, the use of offshore reinsurance and the liquidity of investments in \u200bprivate credit markets.\nThe report cites comments Bessent made in February to the Economic Club of Dallas, where he argued that when assets shift from\u00a0private credit lenders\u00a0into regulated financial institutions, like banks, pension funds or captive insurance companies, \u201cTreasury gets involved.\u201d\n\u201cI am concerned with watching, how does this get to the regulated financial \u200bsystem,\u201d he added.\nRegulators have been\u00a0expressing concern\u00a0over the size of private credit outfits and other components of the\u00a0nonbank financial institution\u00a0(NFBI) space for some time.\nFor example, a report late last year from the\u00a0Financial Stability Board\u00a0(FSB) found that the value of assets held by these groups \u2014 which also include hedge funds and insurers \u2014 expanded at more than twice the rate of assets in the banking industry during 2024.\nDuring that year, the report said, the non-bank space grew by 9.4%, while the banking sector grew by 4.7%. The NBFI sector grew its total assets to\u00a051% ($256.8 trillion)\u00a0of total global financial assets, versus $191 trillion for banks.\nNevertheless, the banking and NBFI industries are increasingly interconnected, the report said, \u201cbroadening the channels through which shocks can propagate across sectors and jurisdictions.\u201d\nThe board also flagged \u201csevere limitations in the availability of data for private credit in statistical and regulatory reports,\u201d partially because \u201cthere was no standard definition of private credit activities\u201d between countries, making it difficult to identify them.\n\r\n\r\nThe post Private Credit Unease Prompts Treasury-Insurance Regulators Meetings appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-30T13:19:10-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-30T22:00:08-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/US-Treasury-Department.jpg", "tags": [ "B2B", "B2B Payments", "Insurance", "loans", "News", "private credit", "PYMNTS News", "regulations", "Treasury Department", "What's Hot", "What's Hot In B2B", "Loans" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3608415", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/loans/2026/private-credit-funds-understating-their-exposure-to-software-struggles/", "title": "Private Credit Funds Understating Their Exposure to Software Struggles", "content_html": "Private credit fund managers are reportedly downplaying their exposure to software amid market upheaval.
The post Private Credit Funds Understating Their Exposure to Software Struggles appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "Private credit fund managers are reportedly downplaying their exposure to software amid market upheaval.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nThat\u2019s according to an analysis of the industry\u00a0published\u00a0Sunday (March 29) by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ).\nThe news outlet examined four large funds marketed to investors by\u00a0Apollo Global Management,\u00a0Ares Management,\u00a0Blackstone\u00a0and\u00a0Blue Owl Capital, and found that these funds have more exposure to the software sector than their filings indicate.\nThe report notes that investor worries about the industry\u2019s\u00a0exposure to the software space\u00a0helped drive record withdrawals from private credit funds during the first quarter of 2026. Fund managers argue that artificial intelligence (AI) will impact each software firm in different ways, and that companies will adjust or even benefit.\nOn average, the report said, the four funds listed around 19% of their investments as software-related, while the WSJ found that figure was actually around 25%. The WSJ cites a recent report from Barclays analysts on the private credit market which points out that there is no uniform way for private credit funds to classify their exposure to various industries.\n\u201cThis sector \u2018massaging\u2019 generates concern from the investor community and makes it difficult to assess degrees of true diversification across funds,\u201d the analysts said.\nPrivate credit funds, the WSJ added, contend that software companies that serve other sectors should be reported as part of that sector as they depend on those industries. This approach began before the current\u00a0unease about software.\nThe report also cites a recent analysis from\u00a0Morgan Stanley\u00a0which found that software companies in private-credit portfolios have, on average, more debt compared with their earnings than companies in any other industry.\n\u201cIf you look at the private-credit deals that have gone sideways, there\u2019s a software element to the majority of them,\u201d Alex Chaloff, chief investment officer at\u00a0Bernstein Private Wealth Management, told the WSJ.\nIn other private credit news, PYMNTS wrote last week about the industry\u2019s shift into a phase where \u201cfunding access depends on how loans are financed after origination,\u201d with market signals showing \u201ccapital flowing to structured credit even as liquidity stress emerges in fund-based lending.\u201d\n\u201cIn short,\u201d the report added, \u201cprivate credit is no longer a contest of who can originate loans. It is becoming a test of who can move them.\u201d\nRecent developments have underlined that divide. For example,\u00a0Stone Ridge Asset Management\u00a0told investors it would meet only\u00a011% of redemption requests\u00a0in one of its private credit funds after a surge withdrawal demands.\nAt the same time,\u00a0Bank of America\u00a0has cautioned clients about\u00a0exposure to private credit\u00a0by offering a selection of European financial stocks positioned against firms \u201cmost exposed to private credit shocks,\u201d citing potential downside risk.\n\r\n\r\nThe post Private Credit Funds Understating Their Exposure to Software Struggles appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-30T10:25:42-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-30T10:25:42-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/nonbank-lenders-private-credit.png", "tags": [ "Investments", "loans", "News", "private credit", "PYMNTS News", "software", "What's Hot", "Loans" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3600851", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/loans/2026/square-boosts-lending-by-catering-to-businesses-with-non-standard-revenue-patterns/", "title": "Square Expands Lending Access for Seasonal and Project-Based Sellers", "content_html": "Square is now extending credit to more sellers after improving its underwriting models to assess the creditworthiness of those with non-standard revenue patterns.
The post Square Expands Lending Access for Seasonal and Project-Based Sellers appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "Square is now extending credit to more sellers after improving its underwriting models to assess the creditworthiness of those with non-standard revenue patterns.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nThe new underwriting models enable the company to offer Square Loans to project-based earners, seasonal operators and businesses that are new to Square, the company said in a Friday (March 27) press release.\nAs a result, Square is extending credit offers to over 50% more sellers, according to the release.\n\u201cTo serve these sellers, we\u2019re not changing or loosening our standards; instead, we\u2019ve improved the innovative underwriting models that underpin Square Loans to more accurately evaluate the different realities that so many businesses experience \u2014 all while maintaining the same responsible practices that have made Square\u2019s credit offerings not only industry leading, but beloved by sellers across the globe,\u201d Square said in the release.\nThe improved underwriting models are built on those Square has offered for over a decade, according to the release.\nThe company\u2019s unique position in the flow of funds enables it to gather real-time data that can be combined with advanced machine learning to provide a deep understanding of a business\u2019 health, the release said. This understanding enables Square to extend credit to businesses that may be overlooked by traditional financial institutions, per the release.\nSince 2014, the firm has originated over $32 billion in loans for small businesses, with the average loan size being about $10,000, according to the release.\nSquare\u2019s newly enhanced underwriting models offer funding options that include smaller credit offers that can be repaid over shorter periods of time than traditional Square Loans. These offers can help businesses cover needs such as cash flow gaps, supply needs and utilities costs, per the release.\nIn the time since Square began rolling out these new offers to more sellers, the firm has seen that \u201cthe early results demonstrate we\u2019re filling a significant market gap, further broadening access to credit, and setting more small businesses up for success.\u201d\nJack Dorsey, CEO of Square parent company Block, noted the appeal of Square Loan to sellers during a November 2024 earnings call.\n\u201cIt\u2019s just having an easy option for sellers to potentially increase sales by getting an appropriately sized loan right to their email inbox and an invite to opt into it and then paying back through just making sales to their customers,\u201d Dorsey said, adding that the offering \u201creally took off. And it kind of guides how we think about all of our lending products.\u201d\nFor all PYMNTS B2B coverage, subscribe to the daily\u00a0B2B Newsletter.\n\r\n\r\nThe post Square Expands Lending Access for Seasonal and Project-Based Sellers appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-27T16:43:33-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-29T20:14:49-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Square.jpg", "tags": [ "B2B", "B2B Payments", "Lending", "loans", "News", "PYMNTS News", "Square", "underwriting", "What's Hot", "What's Hot In B2B", "Loans" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3596407", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/loans/2026/u-s-banks-avvance-intros-longer-term-home-improvement-loans/", "title": "U.S. Bank\u2019s Avvance Intros Longer-Term Home Improvement Loans", "content_html": "U.S. Bank has introduced longer-term home improvement loans for its Avvance point-of-sale lending platform.
The post U.S. Bank\u2019s Avvance Intros Longer-Term Home Improvement Loans appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "U.S. Bank has introduced longer-term home improvement loans for its Avvance point-of-sale lending platform.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nThe new loan options, announced Wednesday (March 25), include six-year and and seven-year terms and are designed to help finance higher-cost home improvement projects.\n\u201cThese extended terms provide homeowners with greater payment flexibility while helping contractors and service providers improve affordability and conversion at the point of sale,\u201d the bank said in a news release.\nIn addition to product enhancements, Avvance is also expanding its network of partners, including Skeps, a \u201cmulti-lender orchestration\u201d platform that lets merchants connect customers with the most appropriate offers from a range of lenders.\n\u201cThe addition of Avvance to Skeps collection of lending partners, puts Avvance in the hands of more merchants who want to provide flexible financing at the point of need and within their customer checkout and decision-making workflows,\u201d the release added.\nIn addition to home improvement, the bank said Avvance provides financing for segments that include audiology, elective healthcare and other big-ticket categories, \u201cso partners can offer trusted financing wherever customers are making important purchasing decisions.\u201d\nThe new offerings come at a time when\u2014per recent PYMNTS Intelligence research\u2014a growing number of American consumers are using credit not simply because they must, but because they think of it as a flexible financial tool that meets different needs at different moments.\nThe research revealed that credit has evolved into something more nuanced than a simple borrowing instrument. Consumers increasingly treat it as a mix of planning tool, safety net and financial strategy.\n\u201cFor banks and card issuers, this shift exposes a deeper story about why people turn to credit in the first place and how those motivations are changing,\u201d PYMNTS wrote.\nMeanwhile, additional PYMNTS Intelligence research finds that embedded financing offerings are at an inflection point. Companies say embedded finance is still strategically important, but are becoming more selective about how they use it and the partners they work with.\n\u201cWhether a business trusts an embedded finance provider has overtaken speed and price as the most important factor in choosing it as a partner, especially among business-to-business companies,\u201d PYMNTS wrote last month. \u201cThese firms operate deeper in the financial stack, where outages, compliance failures and data issues carry real consequences. For them, reliability and governance now matter more than fast launches.\u201d\n\r\n\r\nThe post U.S. Bank\u2019s Avvance Intros Longer-Term Home Improvement Loans appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-26T12:54:05-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-26T12:54:05-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/US-Bank.jpg", "tags": [ "Avvance", "credit", "embedded finance", "News", "PYMNTS News", "U.S. Bank", "What's Hot", "Loans" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3595222", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/loans/2026/coinbase-and-better-enable-homebuyers-to-borrow-against-their-bitcoin-or-usdc/", "title": "Coinbase Enables Homebuyers to Borrow Against Their Bitcoin or USDC", "content_html": "Coinbase and Better have partnered to enable borrowers to pledge their bitcoin or USDC holdings as collateral for a loan used to cover the down payment on a house.
The post Coinbase Enables Homebuyers to Borrow Against Their Bitcoin or USDC appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "Coinbase and Better have partnered to enable borrowers to pledge their bitcoin or USDC holdings as collateral for a loan used to cover the down payment on a house.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nWith a crypto-backed mortgage originated and serviced by Better, borrowers get a standard Fannie Mae mortgage on the home as well as a second loan that is secured by cryptocurrency and funds the cash down payment, Coinbase said in a Thursday (March 26) blog post.\nThe borrower\u2019s crypto is held in custody in Better\u2019s Coinbase Prime account for the life of the loan and then returned to them when the loan is repaid, according to the post.\nThe terms of the loan are not affected by the volatility of the price of bitcoin, the post said.\nThis solution enables crypto holders to secure a home loan without having to liquidate their crypto holdings, forgo future upside and trigger capital gains taxes, per the post.\nThe program will accept bitcoin and USDC as collateral at launch. It may add other assets such as ETH and SOL as eligible collateral in the future, according to a frequently asked questions page.\n\u201cThese new crypto-backed mortgages are the first step in integrating crypto into the core plumbing of the U.S. housing finance system,\u201d Coinbase said in the post. \u201cThis is what the Everything Exchange vision looks like in practice: not just trading every asset class onchain, but making those assets usable in the real world.\u201d\nIn an earlier move, Coinbase announced in January 2025 that it was rolling out bitcoin-backed loans that allow customers to instantly borrow USDC to cover major expenses without selling their bitcoin. The company expanded this offering in November 2025 to allow customers to borrow USDC against their ethereum.\nIn Better\u2019s own Thursday press release about the new token-backed mortgage program, Better CEO and founder Vishal Garg said this solution is designed to make homeownership more accessible for the 52 million Americans who own digital assets.\n\u201cTogether, we are taking a major step towards truly democratizing homeownership for hardworking Americans,\u201d Garg said.\nGarg founded Better to streamline the mortgage approval process from weeks to minutes, according to the PYMNTS Intelligence report \u201cExpanding Payments Choice Playbook.\u201d\n\r\n\r\nThe post Coinbase Enables Homebuyers to Borrow Against Their Bitcoin or USDC appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-26T10:45:58-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-26T21:41:04-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Coinbase.jpg", "tags": [ "Better", "Bitcoin", "coinbase", "Cryptocurrency", "loans", "News", "PYMNTS News", "What's Hot", "Loans" ] }, { "id": "https://www.pymnts.com/?p=3584668", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/loans/2026/private-credit-rewards-distribution-as-liquidity-tightens/", "title": "Private Credit\u2019s New Power Shift: From Making Loans to Funding Them", "content_html": "Private credit is entering a phase where funding access depends on how loans are financed after origination. Market signals show capital flowing to structured credit even as liquidity stress emerges in fund-based lending.
The post Private Credit\u2019s New Power Shift: From Making Loans to Funding Them appeared first on PYMNTS.com.
\n", "content_text": "Private credit is entering a phase where funding access depends on how loans are financed after origination. Market signals show capital flowing to structured credit even as liquidity stress emerges in fund-based lending.\r\n\t\r\n\t\t\r\n\t\r\n\r\n\r\n\t\nIn short, private credit is no longer a contest of who can originate loans. It is becoming a test of who can move them.\nRecent developments underscore that divide. As PYMNTS reported in recent days, Stone Ridge Asset Management told investors it would meet only 11% of redemption requests in one of its private credit funds after a wave of withdrawal demands. The fund holds consumer and small business loans from FinTech firms including Affirm, LendingClub, Upstart, Block and Stripe, suggesting that liquidity pressure is not confined to a single asset class.\nAt the same time, Bank of America has warned clients about exposure to private credit by offering a basket of European financial stocks positioned against firms \u201cmost exposed to private credit shocks,\u201d citing potential downside risk. Private capital firms such as Blue Owl and Blackstone have also seen sharp declines in market value as investor concern builds.\nLiquidity Strains Surface as Investors Pull Back\nThe pressure is coming from the funding side of the market. Investors have sought to exit private credit positions in recent weeks, forcing fund managers to reconsider redemption limits and liquidity terms. When capital is tied up in fund structures, those requests cannot always be met without selling assets at unfavorable prices or delaying payouts.\nThis dynamic is drawing attention from both markets and regulators. The rapid growth of private credit, limited transparency in direct lending and the growing links between funds and banks have been flagged as areas of concern. As banks provide financing and liquidity support behind the scenes, stress in private credit does not remain contained.\nWhat It Means for Corporate Borrowers\nFor companies that rely on private credit, the shift may have ripple effects. Many borrowers are middle market firms with limited collateral, often in sectors such as software and financial services. These loans depend on cash flow performance (and not just hard assets), and recovery rates tend to be lower than in traditional lending structures.\nIn the current environment, access to credit increasingly depends on how those loans can be funded after origination. Borrowers whose loans can be packaged into securitized structures or supported by institutional balance sheets are more likely to see steady access to capital. Others may face tighter terms or slower funding decisions as investors weigh liquidity risk alongside credit risk.\nA Market Growing Faster Than Its Structure\nPrivate credit has expanded into a roughly $2 trillion market, with expectations that it could exceed $3.5 trillion in the coming years. That growth has been supported by a network of banks, asset managers and institutional investors that provide financing behind the scenes.\nYet that interconnection is now under closer review. Banks supply credit lines and funding facilities that allow private credit funds to operate, which means they share exposure to borrower performance even when they do not originate the loans. When liquidity tightens, that exposure can surface across multiple parts of the financial system.\nLoan sizes have also increased, often exceeding $80 million, as the Federal Reserve has noted, while many borrowers operate in sectors with limited tangible collateral. That combination raises questions about how risk is priced and how losses would be absorbed in a downturn.\nFunding Channels Are Becoming the Differentiator\nFor FinTech and payments firms, private credit has become a key funding source for consumer and small business lending, with projections that such funding could grow to about $140 billion globally in the coming years.\nThe emerging pattern is that capital is concentrating around credit that can be moved. Loans that can be securitized, rated or financed by banks and institutional investors continue to attract funding. Loans that remain tied to fund structures with limited liquidity face greater scrutiny.\nThat shift places new emphasis on data and transparency. Real-time financial data is increasingly used to assess borrower health and detect early signs of stress, as PYMNTS has detailed, allowing lenders and investors to adjust pricing and risk exposure more quickly.\nThe competitive edge is sharpening, too. \u00a0In private credit, the ability to originate loans remains necessary. The ability to fund them, and to move them through reliable channels, is becoming decisive.\n\r\n\r\nThe post Private Credit\u2019s New Power Shift: From Making Loans to Funding Them appeared first on PYMNTS.com.", "date_published": "2026-03-23T12:50:09-04:00", "date_modified": "2026-03-23T22:23:53-04:00", "authors": [ { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" } ], "author": { "name": "PYMNTS", "url": "https://www.pymnts.com/author/pymnts/", "avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/679fcf5c2ed5358e99e8e23b22e3b5d761e37bdb76fa7b0e13d8ecd9ff01bf88?s=512&d=blank&r=g" }, "image": "https://www.pymnts.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/power-shift.jpg", "tags": [ "B2B", "credit", "Featured News", "loans", "News", "private credit", "PYMNTS News", "working capital", "Loans" ] } ] }