Daily Digest - May 6, 2026

🎂Happy Birthday to: Michael Filla of LOGS Legal Group, Titus Andrade of Avant, Oliver Thoenen of Hinshaw & Culbertson, and Darryl Specter of Debt Collection Consulting. Belated Happy Birthday to Charles E. Natkins of Octane Lending (Mar 5).

🎉Congratulations for starting new positions: David Fiorello as Director of Sales and Development at Verc.ai.

Logo Madness!

It’s time to crown the best logo in the industry. Full bracket available here so you can track the competition. Click on the link underneath the logo to choose your winner. Voting is open for 24 hours.

Treasury Signals Potential Return of Private Collection Agencies for Student Loans

• A newly released set of agency responses to an inquiry from Sen. Elizabeth Warren [D-Mass.] sheds light on an interesting development for the credit and collection industry: the Treasury Department is actively exploring the use of private collection agencies to recover defaulted federal student loan debt, while defending its broader partnership with the Department of Education.

• More details here.

A MESSAGE FROM TCN

TODAY’S WEBINAR

UPCOMING WEBINARS

Court Dismisses FCRA Claims Against CRAs in Signature Dispute Case

• A District Court judge in South Carolina has dismissed Fair Credit Reporting Act claims against the three major credit reporting agencies, finding they were not required to resolve a dispute over whether a plaintiff’s signature on vehicle financing documents had been forged.

• More details here.

Ruling Highlights Pleading Gap Between ‘Contact’ and ‘Communication’

• A District Court judge in Florida has partially granted a defendant’s motion to dismiss a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act lawsuit that centered on two weekday communications, finding that while the plaintiff plausibly alleged harm, she failed to sufficiently plead that a qualifying “communication” actually occurred under the statute. The decision highlights an important distinction for collection operations: alleging that contact occurred at an inconvenient time is not enough on its own if the nature of the communication itself is not clearly established.

• More details here.

Gartner: 85% of Service Leaders Expanding Agent Roles in the Age of AI

• A new report from Gartner is pushing back on one of the biggest assumptions surrounding AI in customer service: that it will lead to widespread layoffs. Instead, the data points to something more nuanced and, for many in collections and financial services, more actionable.

• More details here.

43 Companies Seeking Collection Talent

• Whether you want to work for a big company or a small one, or whether you want to work remotely or in an office, or whether you want to work for a creditor or a collector or a collection law firm, there is an opportunity waiting for you in this week’s job listings summary.

• More details here.

The Memory Project by Collection Industry Veteran Heath Morgan Now Available on Audiobook, Narrated by Award-Winning Narrator Brandon J. Peterson

• Heath Morgan, a 20-year veteran of the collection industry, announces the release of the audiobook edition of his debut novel, The Memory Project, now available on Audible and Apple Books. The audiobook is narrated by award-winning narrator Brandon J. Peterson who brings the chilling and thought-provoking story to life.

• More details here.

WORTH NOTING: State legislatures can be tricky to understand. Here are details on when a bill is actually "dead" ... AI is forcing CEOs to make a hard choice: lay off employees or make them do more work ... Even with health insurance, many Americans are terrified of medical bills, according to a new survey ... Investinet is celebrating its 15-year anniversary ... If you're curious what might be the longest video that is on YouTube, this might be it ... Why you need to stop going to bed with wet hair ... A feng shui expert shares six tips to help transform your home ... Here's a hot take: "The Bear" is better without Carmy in it.

Wisdom Wednesday, part I

Wisdom Wednesday, Part II

Webinar Recap: How to Conduct a Transparency Audit

The webinar, sponsored by Halsted Financial, underscored the growing importance of explainability in AI systems used across credit and collections. Panelists agreed that transparency audits are not about documenting every data point but about ensuring decision-level clarity, reproducibility, and risk awareness. As Laura White emphasized, “You shouldn’t have to be a nuclear engineer to understand the answer.” The discussion highlighted that audits must be continuous, involve human oversight, and extend to vendors, since organizations remain accountable for partner compliance. Panelists also noted that regulators are learning alongside the industry, creating opportunities for collaboration and shared progress.

🧠 Key Takeaways:

• Prioritize decision-level explainability: Ensure AI outcomes can be explained in plain language, reproduced consistently, and backed with evidence.

• Implement continuous auditing with human oversight: Move beyond annual reviews; integrate daily or ongoing checks with clear risk scoring based on human involvement.

• Extend audits to vendors: Require contractual safeguards, questionnaires, and compliance addendums to ensure vendor adherence to data protection and transparency standards.

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