REPAY recently participated in an interview with Smarter Loans to discuss the latest digital transformation trends in the lending industry.

There is one question on everyone’s mind right now: what’s next? There’s just so much uncertainty about the near future. What new realities will COVID-19 bring?

Delinquencies were increasing before the virus outbreak. What happens now? Even before the massive drop in economic activity due to COVID-19, there were signs of trouble brewing on the subprime loan side of the auto lending market. Now more than ever, it's important for subprime lenders to understand and effectively manage these delinquencies.

Our appetite for borrowing only continues to grow, Coronavirus or not.

Debt levels are rising despite what has been eleven years of favorable economic performance. That was before the Coronavirus outbreak. Borrowing demand, however, is likely to remain strong, if not just a little delayed, despite the forced global slowdown.

At this point, millennial borrowers probably make up a large portion of your customer base, so it’s important to understand their spending habits and priorities. The American Institute for Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) conducted a study of millennials and found 70% believed that financial stability was the ability to pay all their bills each month. So, according to millennials, stability means striving for zero payments due at the end of the month.

Take advantage of one of the few times of year you KNOW your customers have money for both down payments and loan payments.

The average tax refund last year was $2,869, according to Marketwatch.

Merchant processing makes collecting on-time payments from borrowers easier and faster for consumer lenders. Consumer installment loans, typically provided by both the traditional storefront lenders and the newer online lending fintech companies, are attractive to borrowers for many reasons. 

Thanks to the fintech industry, more firms are making more consumer loans at lower interest rates than ever before.