Credit Cards

Consumers stopped using their credit cards in March as the coronavirus shut down the economy, according to data from the Federal Reserve.

Mastercard Inc. President Michael Miebach said contactless transactions increased 40% worldwide in the quarter that ended in March, and he expects those habits to last.

American Express' first-quarter profit plunged 76 percent from a year ago as the financial-services provider set aside $2.6 billion for losses.

While often discouraged by financial planners, more debt might be a necessity given the depths of economic hardship wrought by the pandemic.

The changes in some cases would be hardest on small businesses.

More than 100 million Americans had credit card debt going into the coronavirus pandemic.

One method saves money, the other may save sanity

LendingTree CEO Doug Lebda admitted he's talked to business owners who say coronavirus is having "a major, major impact" on them, especially if their companies' supply chains are in Asia.

Ajay Banga, who took charge of the company just after the 2008-09 financial crisis, has seen the payment processor's revenue triple during his tenure.

These are the five factors that go into calculating a credit score.

Total U.S. consumer borrowing rose $22.1 billion in December, the central bank said. That was the biggest gain since July and nearly double the $11.8 billion increase in November.

The trillion-dollar market cap club expanded last week to a third U.S. company, with Google parent Alphabet topping the lofty valuation mark. Adding the next member is likely to take a while.

Consumers with rising debt levels and those who fall behind on loan payments will be graded more harshly.