U.S. President's Advisory Council on Financial Literacy-Office of the Vice Chair Blog

FDIC Puts Spotlight on Loans to Poor

By: Joe Adler

American Banker, 7/1/2008 -- Two Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. events next week will focus on promoting mortgage lending to low- and moderate-income households.

On July 8, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke, and JPMorgan Chase & Co. chief executive James Dimon are to be headline speakers at a forum on low-income mortgage lending in the FDIC's building in Arlington, Va.

Pay Dirt: Promoting financial literacy

The Urban Financial Services Coalition is in the Twin Cities to promote financial literacy, personal responsibility and banking careers.

By KARA McGUIRE, Star Tribune

Last update: June 28, 2008 - 4:21 PM

On the heels of the civil rights movement, two black bankers created the Urban Financial Services Coalition in 1974 to support fellow minority bankers and the communities that they serve.

The group, which held its 34th national conference in Minneapolis earlier this month, today boasts around 2,000 members with 21 professional chapters around the country. One of the newest is the Twin Cities chapter. Read the complete story here.

Too few borrowers talk to lenders: Treasury's Steel

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Too many distressed American borrowers are still reluctant to talk to their mortgage lenders about changing their loan terms because of a lack of financial education, a top U.S. Treasury official said on Wednesday. Read the entire Reuters story here.

Treasury Under Secretary Focuses on Financial Lit 101

U.S. Treasury Under Secretary for Domestic Finance Robert Steel believes access to financial literacy tools may have helped many Americans avoid foreclosure, according to testimony he gave in front of the President's Advisory Council on Financial Literacy Subcommittee on the Underserved. Connect here for the complete story. 

Steel: Financial Literacy Might Have ‘Mitigated’ Crisis

A more financially literate consumer base might have helped lessen the blow of the subprime mortgage crisis, helping consumers understand the loans they were getting as well as helping them better understand the loss mitigation options available to them, according to remarks delivered Wednesday by Treasury Undersecretary Robert Steel.  To read the complete story on Housing Wire connect here.

Treasury's Steel: lenders should avoid cutting off borrowers as practices change

WASHINGTON (Thomson Financial) - A senior US Treasury official warned today that financial institutions need to avoid cutting off access to credit for credit-worthy borrowers as they work to improve their lending standards in the wake of the ongoing mortgage and credit crisis. Read the complete story at Forbes.com here.

Under Secretary for Domestic Finance Robert K. Steel

Washington- Thank you and good morning. Let me first congratulate you on a timely and important meeting. I especially want to thank the President's Advisory Council on Financial Literacy and the Subcommittee on the Underserved for organizing this meeting.

In particular I want to thank the subcommittee chair, John Hope Bryant, as well as Council members Sharon Lechter and Ignacio Salazar for their efforts to cast more attention on the underserved, and subcommittee member Rev. Dr. Robert Lee, who could not be with us today, for his efforts in this area. And I also want to thank you, our meeting participants, for agreeing to focus on this important work.

When John called me about the Subcommittee's plans for today, he spoke about how today's mortgage problems are a clear example of the need for financial literacy. I wholeheartedly agree. But what I especially liked about today's meeting is your focus on the underserved and encouraging access to financial services to continue for credit-worthy Americans, even as we work through these challenging times in our financial markets.

Financial inclusion to overcome exclusions

Bhanoji Rao

Social cohesion and national unity are mere words unless backed by government action that ensures decent income levels and assets such as housing for each and every Indian family. If financial inclusion could contribute sufficiently to help improving the well-being of the citizenry, we can then declare that we have achieved something in the direction of moving towards a developed society.