Daily Digest - July 1, 2026

🎂 Happy birthday to: Joseph Castello of Dedicated Financial GBC, Brandon Locke of The CCS Companies, Richard Aiton Marizan of Azriel Asset Management, Moonisah Bushra Khan of Skit.ai and Alfred Pitzner of Conforma Compliance Group. Happy belated Birthday to Mark Neeb of Channel Payments.

🎉Congratulations for starting new positions: Andy Dickson-Rekasi as Senior Manager Compliance - Complaints Management at First Citizens Bank.

New AI Event!

I am thrilled to announce a new live conference I am hosting. It’s an AI conference for the credit and collection industry. It will be held in Denver this September. Check out getbrainstorming.com for more information. And watch the video below to see me showcasing my outdoor skills.

If you are interested in being a speaker at the event, click here.

Massachusetts Moves to Bar Medical Debt From Credit Reports, Tying Rule to Provider Licenses

• Massachusetts is moving to keep medical debt off consumer credit reports, and it is using provider licensing as the enforcement hammer.

• More details here.

A MESSAGE FROM TCN

TODAY’S WEBINAR

UPCOMING WEBINARS

Judge Dismisses FCRA Suit Against Lender, CRAs Over Allegedly Inaccurate Tradelines

• A District Court judge in New Jersey has dismissed a Fair Credit Reporting Act lawsuit against two credit reporting agencies and a lender after finding the plaintiff never spelled out how the tradelines he complained about were actually inaccurate.

• More details here.

Court Trims Pro Se FDCPA Suit to a Single Cease-Communication Count

• A District Court judge in Arizona has narrowed a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act lawsuit down to a single cease-communication claim, while warning the plaintiffs that fabricated, apparently AI-generated quotes could draw sanctions if repeated.

• More details here.

Amazon Settles FCRA Records Case with FTC for $2.25M

• Amazon.com will pay $2.25 million to resolve Federal Trade Commission allegations that it knowingly violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act by refusing to hand over transaction records to identity theft victims, a settlement that sets a record penalty under a provision of the FCRA.

• More details here.

Appeals Court Affirms Dismissal of EFTA Suit Over a Disputed Charge

• The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has affirmed the dismissal of an Electronic Fund Transfer Act lawsuit that accused a credit union of failing to reverse a charge the plaintiff disputed.

• More details here.

Most Consumers Using BNPL By Necessity, Not Choice

• Buy now, pay later has become a mainstream form of consumer credit, but a growing share of it is going unpaid in a corner of the market that traditional collectors and credit bureaus rarely touch.

• More details here.

38 Companies Seeking Collection Talent

• Remote roles are everywhere on the job board this week, with work-from-home openings at RevCycle, Meduit, First American, R1 RCM, JG Wentworth, and more across collections, RCM, and analytics. Beyond the remote picks, the board spans management roles at McKesson, Fifth Third, Synchrony, and Capital One; legal and compliance openings at PRA Group, Gurstel, and Rausch Sturm; and technology jobs at Credit Control, Yrefy, and USAA.

• More details here

WORTH NOTING: Just how long it can take to save for a down payment on a house is very dependent on where you are living and where you want to live ... A look at all the TV series that were either renewed or canceled in June ... CFPB employees have two weeks to decide if they want to move to DC and continue working for the government ... A look at how the ruling in Trump v. Slaughter should force those looking to reform the CFPB to adjust their priorities ... How eight hours of nothing became the most watched livestream fintech of the year ... The best sites if you are looking for a job or looking to hire someone ... The "Father of the Internet" is retiring ... A look at how parents are talking to their kids about money.

Wisdom Wednesday, part I

Wisdom Wednesday, Part II

Webinar Recap: Stop Reading Reports. Start Asking Questions

The webinar, sponsored by CSS Impact, urged industry professionals to rethink their reliance on static reports and instead cultivate a culture of inquiry. Panelists emphasized that reports provide data snapshots but rarely reveal the deeper story. By asking sharper, more strategic questions, organizations can uncover compliance risks, consumer behavior patterns, and operational inefficiencies that reports alone may obscure.

One panelist captured the theme with the quote: “Reports are not answers; they are starting points.” Another added: “If you only read the report, you’re already behind.” These insights underscored the importance of curiosity, collaboration, and critical thinking in modern collections.

Examples shared included a bank that discovered younger consumers were disengaging, leading to a digital-first outreach model, and a healthcare provider that identified compliance safeguards after a junior analyst questioned fluctuating metrics. Technology, particularly analytics and AI, was highlighted as a tool to support deeper questioning and scenario testing.

🧠 Key Takeaways:

• Adopt an inquiry mindset: Encourage teams to challenge assumptions and ask “why” behind the numbers. This approach uncovers hidden trends and compliance risks.

• Leverage cross-functional collaboration: Involve compliance, operations, and consumer experience teams in data discussions to generate richer insights and more effective strategies.

• Use technology to support questioning: Employ analytics and AI tools to model scenarios, test hypotheses, and validate insights that emerge from asking better questions.

The session reinforced that reports should serve as the beginning of the conversation, not the conclusion. By fostering curiosity and equipping teams with the right tools, organizations can transform static data into actionable strategies that drive compliance, efficiency, and consumer trust. As one panelist concluded: “The smartest question is often more valuable than the smartest report.”

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