WCIA-TV: “We can stop sinking”: Legislators celebrate anniversary of Illinois’ break-up with payday lending
Lawmakers celebrated the one-year anniversary of the passage of the Predatory Loan Prevention Act (PLPA) on Wednesday.
Chicago Sun-Times: Chicago-based lender stymied by state cap on interest rates
"Consumer advocates suspect Opportunity Financial, or OppFi, is fighting back against the limit of 36% on loan interest, but the company isn’t discussing its lobbying aims."
Illinois State Comptroller: Comptroller Mendoza Extends COVID Break for Struggling Taxpayers
Woodstock Institute was proud to join fellow advocates Financial Inclusion for All Illinois, Heartland Alliance, Chicago Jobs Council, COFI, and Legal Action Chicago in fighting to get this impactful program extended for another year. “Extending this program another year...
Block Club Chicago: Chicago’s Last Black-Owned Bank Got Millions in Government Deposits – Then Had to Give Them Back
As Black-owned banks disappear, politicians are under increasing pressure to save them. Big deposits are a ready solution, but sometimes they burden the banks more than they help.
Protocol: Lendtable helps people max out their 401(k)s. So what’s the catch?
A fintech startup wants to give people cash to take advantage of employer match programs that might otherwise be out of their reach. Advocates have concerns.
Chicago Sun-Times: High-interest loans in Chicago target Black neighborhoods
By Stephanie Zimmerman, November 26, 2021 Using 2019 borrower loan data obtained from state regulators, the nonprofit Woodstock Institute found the top ZIP codes for payday loans, excluding the Loop, were majority-Black… Brent Adams, senior vice president of the...
Evanston Now: State law causing payday loan stores to close
By Jeff Hirsch, November 4, 2021 Brent Adams, of the Illinois-based Woodstock Institute, a liberal policy study group, says borrowers initially feel they will be able to repay say, $500 on time. But, he says, “research shows that a...
Crain’s Chicago Business: First Midwest buyer accused of home-lending discrimination as Fed mulls approval
By Steve Daniels, October 21, 2021 “This (lawsuit) is painting the Federal Reserve into a corner,” says Horacio Mendez, CEO of Chicago-based Woodstock Institute, a 48-year-old fair-lending organization. “I don’t believe this is a delay. I think they have...
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Nicklaus: Jefferson Bank finds itself in another fight, this time over buyer’s lending practices
By David Nicklaus, October 21, 2021 Horacio Mendez, president of the Woodstock Institute in Chicago, called the data “prima facie evidence” of “egregious redlining.” Woodstock, which does research on economic justice, joined the coalition seeking to block the merger. Complicating the...
St. Louis Business Journal: Consumer groups cite minority lending in opposition to merger of First Mid Bancshares, St. Louis-based parent of Jefferson Bank and Trust
By James Drew, October 19, 2021 SLEHCRA and two other groups, the Woodstock Institute and the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, submitted letters Monday opposing the merger to the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. In addition to urging regulators to...