News Archives » predatory lending
International Monetary Fund Releases Plans to Stop Predatory Hedge Funds October 6th, 2014
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) released new proposals for preventing predatory hedge funds and hold-out investors from blocking debt restructurings. The paper proposes a series of reforms to debt contracts, including strengthened collective action clauses and a modification of the pari passu clause that hold-out hedge funds used to sue Argentina.
“In the wake of debt restructurings in Argentina and Greece, the IMF is incredibly concerned about vulture funds,” stated Eric LeCompte, the Executive Director of the religious anti-poverty coalition, Jubilee USA Network. “The IMF is advocating a market approach, but we also need a statutory approach. We need to change both the contracts and the laws.”
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Faith-based Investors Celebrate Victory in Wells Fargo Pay Day Lending Decision January 17th, 2014
Wells Fargo, a major US bank targeted by faith-based investors for their harmful pay day lending practices, announced today that they would discontinue their Direct Deposit Advance service. This is a huge victory on behalf of those who have fallen prey to this predatory lending.
In a Shareholder Resolution with Wells Fargo, which the Oblates co-filed in 2012 and 2013, and in dialogs with company officials, ICCR members raised serious concerns about these loans, their impact on people, and the risks to the bank by engaging in such practices.
ICCR issued a press release on the bank’s decision:
After a long-term engagement with Wells Fargo to promote more responsible lending products, today members of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR) wish to commend management for making the right decision in ending its Direct Deposit Advance program. The company issued a statementtoday announcing that it would discontinue the product effective February 1st.
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Act to Stop Usurious Payday Lending! February 23rd, 2012
US Regulators receive letter from over 250 organizations and individuals on usurious loans.
Over 250 organizations and individual advocates – including the Oblates and other faith-based groups – have joined the call to stop banks from extending predatory payday loans. These loans carry triple-digit annual interest rates of as much as 400 percent.
Consumers can join the call for regulators to stop bank payday lending by signing a petition at: http://rspnsb.li/vZb3iH
Learn about the problem of predatory payday lending in this video from Center for Responsible Lending.
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