News | CFSI in the News Archive

Melissa Koide's Testimony at the Public Hearing on the Community Reinvestment Act Regulations

Read the transcript of testimony from Melissa Koide, Policy Director at CFSI, before the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Comptroller of the Currency Office of Thrift Supervision. Ms. Koide discusses the Community Reinvestment Act and ...

Posted: September 2010

ShoreBank Affiliate -- and Prepaid Advocate -- Will Continue Despite Bank's Failure

This American Banker article notes that despite the August 20th failure of ShoreBank Corp., business will continue as usual for the nonprofit affiliates, including CFSI. In January, CFSI shared that its finances are separate from that of ShoreBank's. Jennifer Tescher, director of ...

Posted: August 2010

15 Must Read Prepaid Debit Card Research Reports

Thanks to the recent IPO of Green Dot Corp. and the tightening of consumer credit, public awareness of prepaid card products has grown. Getdebit.com has listed their top 15 resources for information about prepaid debit cards, including information about how prepaid cards ...

Posted: August 17, 2010

Hispanic TV Network Adds Prepaid to Schedule

Jennifer Tescher is quoted in this American Banker article about Univision Communications, which operates the largest Spanish-language television network in the U.S. Recently, Univision introduced a reloadable, general-purpose MasterCard prepaid card, and the company says it is exploring other financial offerings. The ...

Posted: August 17, 2010

Performance Benefits Inc. Releases Payroll Card Survey Results

CFSI research is mentioned in this yahoo! news article about the ReadyFUND$™ payroll card.The ReadyFUND$ Premier Access Prepaid MasterCard features the eZsuite™ of financial services which provides employees with direct deposit of their payroll and a comprehensive suite of financial services built ...

Posted: July 2010

Treasury: Prepaid "Holds Promise" for Underbanked

Paybefore.com covered our prepaid symposium in Washington, D.C. examining issues surrounding prepaid cards and the underbanked. At the event, Michael Barr, assistant secretary for financial institutions for the U.S. Treasury Department, acknowledged that prepaid cards “hold some promise” as a tool for ...

Posted: July 19, 2010

Making Better Financial Choices

When you need to borrow money to make a purchase or pay a bill, how do you decide what kind of loan to take? Who do you to turn to? Do you base your decision on the interest rate offered by the ...

Posted: July 13, 2010

How about financial services that help, not exploit, the broke?

This Huffington Post article describes one attendees first impressions of the 5th Annual Underbanked Financial Services Forum. Patrice Peyret was originally cautious of the event, not knowing what to expect from a forum focused on underbanked financial services. His ultimate reaction, however, ...

Posted: July 1, 2010

Industries Converge to Serve Underbanked Consumers

This paybefore.com article discusses the record attendance at the 5^th Underbanked Financial Services Forum and its indication that the number and type of organizations coming together to serve the underbanked market are expanding. From banks and retailers to technology providers and media ...

Posted: June 29, 2010

Opinion: Wanted -- Better Financial Literacy

Jennifer Tescher and Pam Flaherty co-write this AOL news article defining the role of financial capabilty in helping consumers recover from the financial crisis.

Financial educators and financial services companies are searching for new ways to raise ...

Posted: June 28, 2010

The Mango Store Lets You Bank Without Commitment

Jennifer Tescher is quoted in this Fast Company article about the new financial services store, Mango. Mango aims to forge transparent, long-term relationships with unbanked consumers rather than treat them as transient customers. Mango's operating costs -- and, by extension, its fees ...

Posted: June 25, 2010

Industry Values Key to Reviving Trust

In this American Banker article, Jennifer Tescher expresses that the financial industry will not regain the trust of Americans unless there is a return to value-based banking. Because of the skepticism around the financial services industry and the ability of markets to ...

Posted: June 15, 2010

A Sweeter Customer Experience

Jennifer Tescher is quoted in this Bank Technology News article Mango Financial Inc., a start-up which targets underbanked consumers and uses a paid-membership model to encourage customers to use their services over the long term. The idea is to appeal to ...

Posted: June 4, 2010

Prepaid Debit Gets Boost from Treasury

CFSI Director Jennifer Tescher talks about the arrival of prepaid debit cards within mainstream financial services in this month’s American Banker column. Recently, the Treasury Department announced that it would phase out paper checks for federal benefit recipients by 2013 and push ...

Posted: April 30, 2010

Mango Tries to Sweeten Experience for Unbanked

CFSI Director Jennifer Tescher and Senior Advisor Arjan Shütte are quoted in this American Banker article about the opening of Mango Financial Inc., a start-up targeting underbanked consumers. Mango’s idea is to appeal to underbanked consumers who have little experience ...

Posted: April 2010

Stored Value Cards – A Costly Convenience?

Stored value cards offer a convenient alternative to credit cards for paying bills or purchasing goods and services, but this convenience may come at a price. There may be a variety of fees associated with the use of some stored value cards ...

Posted: April 19, 2010