Daily Digest - December 31, 2025

🎂 Happy Birthday to: Katie Borchers of Beyond Green Solutions, Debby Feldman of National Credit Corp., and Kendall Pinotti of OppFi.

New Speakers Being Added Daily

Check out ARMTech.live for the growing list of impressive speakers who are going to be in Dallas. This is going to be the must-attend event of the year!

CFPB Lives On – for Now – as Judge Blocks Effort to Starve Regulator of Funding

• A federal judge yesterday blocked the Trump administration’s latest attempt to defund and effectively shut down the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, ruling that the agency must continue to receive funding from the Federal Reserve even while broader legal battles over its future play out.

• More details here.

A MESSAGE FROM TCN

UPCOMING WEBINAR

2025: A Year in Review

• For all the talk about the growing importance that technology and artificial intelligence are having on collections, the most popular articles published on AccountsRecovery during the course of 2025 sing a much different tune about what people care about most. See below for the most popular articles that were published each month this year.

• More details here.

FCRA Case Highlights Importance of Pleading Concrete Damages

• A District Court judge in California has granted a furnisher’s motion to dismiss claims it violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act because the plaintiff was not specific enough in detailing the damages he suffered, but the plaintiff has attempted to rectify that by filing a third amended complaint in which he claims a range of concrete financial and emotional harms tied to the alleged inaccurate credit reporting.

• More details here.

District Court Extends Fallout From Third Circuit Sanctions in FDCPA Litigation

• In another case involving the attorneys who were previously sanctioned for writing intentionally vague dispute letters and then filing suit when the accounts were not properly marked as disputed, a Magistrate Court judge in Pennsylvania has dismissed a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act case and partially granted a motion for sanctions.

• More details here.

47 Companies Seeking Collection Talent

• New year, new job, new you? There are plenty of opportunities out there, as evidenced by the 50 different job openings spotlighted in this week's job listings summary. Check it out to see who is hiring and if your next career move is out there waiting for you.

• More details here.

WORTH NOTING: Can a well-timed reminder help you save more money? Research says it can ... Is the end of the smartphone on the horizon? ... Companies are handing out nicotine pouches to employees to cut down on smoke breaks and boost productivity ... The demand for in-person financial advice is not going away ... The best meal kit delivery services ... The most annoying people of 2025, according to Fox News ... A neuroscientist gives advice about New Year's resolutions ... The 19 states where minimum wage is going to go up tomorrow.

Funny Friday on a Wednesday, part I

Funny Friday on a Wednesday, Part II

Webinar Recap: The New Digital Consumer: How to Redesign Engagement for Mobile-First Borrowers

In a recent webinar hosted by AccountsRecovery.net and sponsored by Concepts to Code, panelists explored how mobile-first borrowers are reshaping engagement strategies in the credit and collections industry.

Moderator Mike Gibb opened by noting that today’s consumers live on their phones—checking balances, making payments, and managing finances with just a few taps. This shift requires agencies, lenders, and healthcare providers to rethink communication strategies and prioritize mobile-friendly, digital-first engagement.

Brian McLellan, VP of Technology at Credit Solutions, emphasized that mobile-first borrowers are not less responsible but interact differently: “They want to engage in short bursts… during breaks or lunchtime, not through long phone calls.” He highlighted the importance of flexible, event-driven cadences that adapt to consumer behavior.

Mark Reinhard, CEO of Concepts to Code, underscored the need for pluggable, integrated systems: “Your systems need to be able to plug into each other… you can’t start early enough to make sure that happens.” He also noted that digital-first outreach should be the default, with data guiding adjustments when consumers prefer traditional methods.

Panelists agreed that digital engagement provides richer data—tracking taps, clicks, and timing—that enables personalization and rapid testing of strategies. Unlike unanswered calls, unopened emails or texts still generate actionable insights, allowing agencies to refine subject lines, timing, and content.

🧠 Key Takeaways:

• Go Digital-First: Assume consumers are willing to engage via mobile until data proves otherwise. Digital outreach is cheaper, more compliant, and more effective.

• Leverage Data for Personalization: Use engagement metrics (opens, taps, timing) to tailor communication strategies and optimize cadences.

• Invest in Flexible Technology: Ensure systems are pluggable and can integrate with new tools, avoiding costly overhauls and enabling rapid innovation.

Did you know you can get full access to all of my past webinars, along with transcripts and summaries of each, for only $29/month? Sign up to be a premium subscriber today!

The Daily Digest is sponsored by TCN