Posts Tagged: Banking
Hispanics own credit cards, but prefer other payment methods
Why, then, do Hispanic credit cardholders appear to prefer other methods of payment, such as cash and debit cards?
It's an issue I've studied for several years as part of an Affiliates Management Company work group. The group counts Corey Skadburg, a credit card expert and the director of credit and risk for Coopera sister company TMG Financial Services, among its members.
“The majority of credit card products on the market today are not geared toward the specific needs of the Hispanic market, particularly for those individuals who may not have traditional credit or for whom fees are a major turn off,” Skadburg said. “It's easy to see how that lack of focused attention and customization can feed an apathetic relationship. But this is a market the industry simply can't ignore. We expect to see more credit cards issuers – both large and small – funnel increased resources toward getting it right with Hispanic cardholders in 2016.”
As Coopera has advised work groups, steering committees and industry associations, it's important to recognize the Hispanic market is multifaceted. We know, for instance, not all Hispanic consumers lack traditional credit. We know there are niche and subgroups who all want different things from their financial products, including credit cards. This will be an important consideration as the credit union and other card-issuing industries evolve to serve Hispanic consumers.
Looking ahead, it's possible we may see Hispanic consumers who own a credit card become more active as digital wallets (at least those powered by credit cards) become more popular. That's because Hispanic consumers tend to over-index on all things mobile. Many are mobile banking users and a sizable percentage say they have used mobile payments in the last 12 months. As Apple Pay, Android Pay and Samsung Pay are accepted in more places, we may see more Hispanic credit cardholders activate, use and become increasingly loyal to their cards, albeit through a completely separate brand. Of course, credit cards are not the only payment method available to mobile payment users, so it will be interesting to see how Hispanic consumers, in particular, chose to configure their digital wallets.
Source: CooperaConsulting.com, Hispanics Own Credit Cards, But Prefer Other Payment Methods, by Posted by Miriam De Dios, February 18, 2016.
Hispanics adapting to mobile banking faster than rest of the population
The survey of 1,500 adults showed that mobile app usage has increased by 33 percent overall from a year ago, while banking online has increased 35 percent during the same period.
Hispanics appear to be leading the charge toward mobile banking with nearly half of those surveyed using banking apps and bank websites more than a year ago. They are also using banking apps while on the go at a higher rate than the rest of the population. The survey also found that:
• 64 percent use it while at work
• 49 percent use it in a check-out line at a store
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• 47 percent use it at a restaurant.
Source: Published originally on The Austin Business Journal as Hispanics adapting to mobile banking faster than rest of the population, by Mike W. Thomas, July 21, 2015.
Latinos and Financial Access and Inclusion
Latinos continue to be among the most unbanked ethnic minorities in the United States. The report highlights the challenges confronted by the unemployed, differences in financial engagement by citizenship status and the use of bank technology by participants.
The report found an important link between naturalization (citizenship) and increased usage of financial systems—noncitizen Latinos were less likely to engage in banking practices. The report also found that 73 percent of the participants managed to put away some savings despite the down economy and that good customer service was paramount to deciding where to bank.
“As the Senate debates how to overhaul our nation’s immigration system, it is interesting to note the link between immigration status and engagement in our financial institutions,” stated Janet Murguía, President and CEO of NCLR.
“Many eligible immigrants have been unable to naturalize because of the cost prohibitive fees, while others may be struggling with finding a way to fully legalize their status under current law. There is no doubt that Hispanics are an increasingly critical consumer base, particularly in times of economic recovery when their full participation helps to stimulate the economy through purchases and savings. The more engaged and fully participating in our financial services they are, the more they and the nation benefit.”
The survey also delved into the use of technology for banking purposes, finding that younger Latinos were more likely to use mobile banking technology when compared to older Latinos. Those who had a bank account were more likely to have access to the Internet than Latinos without a bank account and were more likely to have performed a financial transaction using this medium. Those who demonstrated reluctance to using the internet for this purpose were primarily concerned with the security of personal information.
The report details a body of recommendations to increase Latino financial engagement, including expanding citizenship and economic integration, increasing account ownership through goal-based outreach and product development, promotion of personal savings and bridging the tech divide with trusted partners that can help assuage fears of privacy violations.
“Bringing Latinos into the practice of engaging financial institutions to create savings, make purchases and manage their personal finances will be of huge benefit not just to their long-term success, but to the nation’s short- and long-term economic growth and stability. We are encouraged that through building the right partnerships and engaging in purposeful outreach and educational efforts, we will be able to effectively reach the underserved Latino community,” concluded Murguía.
Source: Originally published on National Council of La Raza as Latino Financial Access and Inclusion in California, June 6, 2013
Reforms could boost landowner use of conservation banks
California legislators have enacted the state's first conservation banking law, based on a pioneering program launched here 18 years ago. The new law provides a regulatory framework for the first time, adopting several reforms proposed by a comprehensive study appearing in the April-June 2013 issue of UC’s California Agriculture journal.
Conservation banks enable farmers, ranchers and other landowners to receive income for managing their lands to benefit wildlife. California established the nation's first conservation banking program in 1995, but it was by executive order only.
“For the first time, Senate Bill 1148 provides statutory procedures for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to evaluate and approve proposed conservation banks.This new law could become a model for other states,” says David Bunn, lead author of the article and researcher for the Wildlife Health Center at UC Davis. "It also authorizes new fees that will make it possible to fund more dedicated staff to carry out the program. However, further reforms are needed, for instance to set minimum conservation standards, enabling wildlife agencies to prioritize potential sites within a region.”
Bunn’s article reports the first evaluation of the 18-year old California Conservation Banking Program. Although the bellwether program fostered 29 conservation banks, new approvals have dropped in recent years; most were approved before 2006 and none has been approved since 2009.
“This is partly because the lack of clear standards and procedures caused negotiations over potential new banks to drag on for five or more years,” says Bunn. The economic recession also contributed to the dwindling use of the program, he adds, because banks provide credits to developers who need to mitigate environmental impacts — and since 2009 there has been little new residential or commercial development.
The new law became effective in January. California is recognized as a world leader in implementing biodiversity offsets as a means to conserve species. Modeled on the federal wetlands mitigation bank program, California’s program fosters establishment of conservation banks to protect species and their habitats in perpetuity. The owner, or management firm owning the bank, is authorized by wildlife agencies to sell credits to developers to mitigate impacts of their proposed developments on wildlife.
In contrast to the regulatory approach that penalizes landowners for harming protected species, conservation banking creates a market incentive for landowners to conserve wildlife. These banks are publicly or privately owned lands managed to provide habitat for species of concern. The owner, or management firm owning the bank, is authorized by wildlife agencies to sell credits to developers to mitigate impacts of their proposed development projects on wildlife.
Developers have to mitigate with habitat similar to the species’ habitat they are negatively impacting, and they have to buy credits in the Bank Service Area designated for the particular species.
Bunn and colleagues first identified the factors limiting the program’s potential, and then surveyed the state’s wildlife agency conservation bank staff and practitioners to identify needed reforms. Three key actions proposed were enactment of standards in critical areas such as prioritizing potential sites, addition of experienced program-dedicated staff, and establishment of a regional approach to planning and monitoring.
The research article, and the entire April-June 2013 issue, can be downloaded at http://californiaagriculture.ucanr.edu.
For more information on the new conservation banking law, visit http://www.dfg.ca.gov/habcon/conplan/mitbank.
Also in this issue:
For switchgrass cultivated as biofuel in California, invasiveness limited by several steps. Weedy traits bred out of food crops are bred into biofuel crops, but switchgrass invasiveness in California is limited by climate.
Buffers between grazing sheep and leafy crops augment food safety. Pathogenic bacteria were occasionally recovered from sheep feces and soil samples collected near fields with grazing sheep.
Stinkwort is rapidly expanding its range in California. Understanding stinkwort’s basic biology is key to predicting where the weed will invade as well as to developing effective controls.
California Agriculture evaluates conservation banking program.