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This case-control study assesses disruptive life events of individuals with schizophrenia or bipolar I disorder using public consumer credit records in conjunction with electronic health record data. Key Points: Question: Can novel, publicly available data aggregated by a consumer credit reporting agency support population-level studies on the occurrence of disruptive life events for patients with diagnoses of bipolar I disorder (BPI) or schizophrenia? Findings: In this case-control study of 46 167 patients with a diagnosis of BPI or schizophrenia, electronic health records data and TransUnion data were used for arrests, bankruptcies, lien, and judgment filings and demonstrated differences in disruptive life events among patients with diagnoses of BPI or schizophrenia and 2 matched comparison cohorts. Meaning: TransUnion data can support population-level studies on the occurrence of disruptive life events and may support effectiveness studies that assess disruptive life events in addition to clinical outcomes. Importance: There is a dearth of population-level data on major disruptive life events (defined here as arrests by a legal authority, address changes, bankruptcy, lien, and judgment filings) for patients with bipolar I disorder (BPI) or schizophrenia, which has limited studies on mental health and treatment outcomes. Objective: To conduct a population-level study on disruptive life events by using publicly available data on disruptive life events, aggregated by a consumer credit reporting agency in conjunction with electronic health record (EHR) data. Design, Setting, and Participants: This study used EHR data from 2 large, integrated health care systems, Kaiser Permanente Southern California and Henry Ford Health. Cohorts of patients diagnosed from 2007 to 2019 with BPI or schizophrenia were matched 1:1 by age at analysis, age at diagnosis (if applicable), sex, race and ethnicity, and Medicaid status to (1) an active comparison group with diagnoses of major depressive disorder (MDD) and (2) a general health (GH) cohort without diagnoses of BPI, schizophrenia, or MDD. Patients with diagnoses of BPI or schizophrenia and their respective comparison cohorts were matched to public records data aggregated by a consumer credit reporting agency (98% match rate). Analysis took place between November 2020 and December 2022. Main Outcomes and Measures: The differences in the occurrence of disruptive life events among patients with BPI or schizophrenia and their comparison groups. Results: Of 46 167 patients, 30 008 (65%) had BPI (mean [SD] age, 42.6 [14.2] years) and 16 159 (35%) had schizophrenia (mean [SD], 41.4 [15.1] years). The majoriy of patients were White (30 167 [65%]). In addition, 18 500 patients with BPI (62%) and 6552 patients with schizophrenia (41%) were female. Patients with BPI were more likely to change addresses than patients in either comparison cohort (with the incidence ratio being as high as 1.25 [95% CI, 1.23-1.28]) when compared with GH cohort. Patients with BPI were also more likely to experience any of the financial disruptive life events with odds ratio ranging from 1.15 [95% CI, 1.07-1.24] to 1.50 [95% CI, 1.42-1.58]). The largest differences in disruptive life events were seen in arrests of patients with either BPI or schizophrenia compared with GH peers (3.27 [95% CI, 2.84-3.78] and 3.04 [95% CI, 2.57-3.59], respectively). Patients with schizophrenia had fewer address changes and were less likely to experience a financial event than their matched comparison cohorts. Conclusions and Relevance: This study demonstrated that data aggregated by a consumer credit reporting agency can support population-level studies on disruptive life events among patients with BPI or schizophrenia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fintech, which stands for financial technology, is growing fast globally since the economic crisis hit the United States in 2008. Fintech companies are striving to secure a competitive advantage over existing financial services by providing efficient financial services utilizing the latest technologies. Fintech companies can be classified into several areas according to their business solutions. Among the Fintech sector, peer-to-peer (P2P) lending companies are leading the domestic Fintech industry. P2P lending is a method of lending funds directly to individuals or businesses without an official financial institution participating as an intermediary in the transaction. The rapid growth of P2P lending companies has now reached a level that threatens secondary financial markets. However, as the growth rate increases, so does the potential risk factor. In addition to government laws to protect and regulate P2P lending, further measures to reduce the risk of P2P lending accidents have yet to keep up with the pace of market growth. Since most P2P lenders do not implement their own credit rating system, they rely on personal credit scores provided by credit rating agencies such as the NICE credit information service in Korea. However, it is hard for P2P lending companies to figure out the intentional loan default of the borrower since most borrowers' credit scores are not excellent. This study analyzed the voices of telephone conversation between the loan consultant and the borrower in order to verify if it is applicable to determine the personal credit score. Experimental results show that the change in pitch frequency and change in voice pitch frequency can be reliably identified, and this difference can be used to predict the loan defaults or use it to determine the underlying default risk. It has also been shown that parameters extracted from sample voice data can be used as a determinant for classifying the level of personal credit ratings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use the example of Equifax, one of the big three US credit reporting agencies, to illustrate legal, technological and managerial issues associated with responding to a massive cybersecurity breach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Collected Papers of Zagreb Law Faculty / Zbornik Pravnog Fakulteta u Zagrebu is the property of Sveuciliste u Zagrebu, Pravni Fakultet and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Historisk Tidskrift is the property of Svenska Historiska Foereningen and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper excavates recent legislative efforts to construct a national space for the purchase and sale of consumer credit risk in the United States. During the mid-1990s and early 2000s the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA 1970) was amended several times in an effort to produce a national space in which consumer credit risk could be priced in “place-free” terms. This effort to produce a national consumer credit space provides insight into several extant and emerging issues in financial geography. First, the recent history of FCRA shows how the (re)production of financial relations at a national level can reshape financial relations at other scalar levels, and vice versa. Second, it reveals that processes of financial subject formation are more closely tied to the production and reproduction of geographical scale than has been previously demonstrated. Finally, I argue that the rescaling(s) that have attended the amendment of FCRA have reworked the relationship between individuals and their virtual financial selves (i.e. credit reports and scores) in ways that have created new tensions, contradictions and sites of struggle in the nascent post-crisis politics of financialization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines how credit information developed during the nineteenth century. The authors explore the origination of ratings categories, the role of reports evaluation in assigning credit ratings, how ratings firms managed client expectations, and the creation of ratings to reflect negative or uncertain information.

- Notice on Technology Risk Management and Notice on Cyber Hygiene' these notices will subject LCBs to technology risk management requirements and cyber security measures similar to those of other financial institutions regulated by MAS. News Section N-17 Amendments to MAS Notices In addition to the amendments mentioned above, the following MAS Notices were amended on 1 October 2020: - MAS Notice 637 on "Risk Based Capital Adequacy Requirements for Banks Incorporated in Singapore" has been amended to (1) define regulatory loss allowance which is recognised as Tier 2 Capital, (2) revise the capital treatment for public sector entities, and (3) implement other technical revisions to the credit and market risk framework; and - MAS Notice 639 on "Exposures to Single Counterparty Groups" has been amended such that the Notice now applies to only banks incorporated in Singapore. Francis Mok Allen & Gledhill LLP Karen Tiah Allen & Gledhill LLP Singapore FINANCIAL REGULATION MAS Consults on Proposed Regulations and Notices for Licensed Credit Bureaus and Approved Members Credit bureaus On 16 October 2020, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) issued a MAS consults on proposed consultation paper on "Proposed Regulations and Notices for Licensed regulations and notices for Credit Bureaus and Approved Members" to seek feedback on regulations licensed credit bureaus and and notices to effect the objectives of the Credit Bureau Act 2016 (CBA) approved members The CBA aims to subject credit bureaus to formal MAS oversight in view of the large amount of sensitive borrower credit information collected by 6 Consumer credit businesses; them. [Extracted from the article]

The article focuses on the role of credit reporting agencies (CRA) in the financial information market. It discusses the business making tactics of CRA and lack of privacy in consumer's information while gathering, compiling and analyzing it. It further reports the consumer protection mechanism developed from a behavioural economic framework for enhancing the consumer financial literacy and discusses the regulatory efforts made for consumer protection under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

The article examines a new criterion of financial decision making and the impact of Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) on decision making. It states the new criterion of financial decision making is based on the digital techniques like internet and other online technologies. It further mention the use of digital tools and technologies in financial marketing and the regulation of several unregulated areas like online marketing and sales with the help of expanding credit bureaus.

The article focuses on the role of credit score algorithms in changing the consumer's behaviour. It states the consumer behaviour is reflected in the form of information and data of the creditors that is present with the credit reporting agencies and systems. It reports the research studies that are responsible for the development of the credit score algorithm by the American public company responsible for decision making FICO.

Credit rating agencies (CRAs) are of great importance in today's modern financial markets. Primary goal of their business is to secure objective and reliable ratings of debt issuers as well as of different credit instruments that are used by financial services users. In order to deliver appropriate ratings CRAs perform analysis using specific methodology and issue credit opinions on credit worthiness of companies and governments. Beside traditional ratings of corporate and government (sovereign) debt instruments, CRAs issue credit opinions on a wide range of more complex financial debt instruments, including structured finance products. The ratings issued by CRAs have a major impact on actions of every player on the financial markets. Credit opinions are closely followed by investors, borrowers, issuers and governments and observed as the key information in determining investment decisions. The rating of any credit instrument represents an indicator of risk associated with ability of the issuer of the debt instrument to fulfill his contractual obligations, i. e. to repay his debts. Additionally, the cost of raising capital in the market is directly influenced by the rating given to an issuer or credit instrument. The unfavorable ratings are increasing the interest costs, thus making the financing more expensive. CRAs play a vital role in financial markets by reducing the informative asymmetry about the credit worthiness between lenders and investors, on one side, and issuers on the other side, thus increasing market efficiency and lowering transaction costs for both sides. CRAs have started to develop their business model in the early 20th century in the USA. The modern credit rating industry is highly concentrated and oligopolistic with "big three" credit agencies dominated the market and having a combined market share of 95%. A number of regional and local agencies provide specific rating services with very limited impact on the global financial markets. The role of CRAs has expanded wiThthe financial globalization and different regulatory frameworks that assigned CRAs an authoritative position and considerable clout over market participants. Nevertheless, the failed ratings and contribution of CRAs to recent financial and global crisis require revisiting their business model, the role and market position as well as a new and flexible approach to their regulation. Therefore, the aim of the paper is to provide an overview of the development and characteristics of the credit rating industry as well as of recent trends and policy changes in the field of CRAs regulation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper studies the impact of workers’ remittances on sovereign ratings in 55 developing countries over the period 1993–2006. First, it looks at the determinants of sovereign ratings, including remittance flows. Second, it builds an empirical model for remittance-dependent countries to capture the effect of remittances, through a reduction of debt vulnerability and volatility of external flows, on Fitch, Moody''s and S&P ratings. Third, it assigns ratings to unrated Latin American and Caribbean countries for which remittance flows are high. Our results suggest that there is no single model to rate countries and the impact of remittances on ratings is enhanced for small, low and middle income economies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The threat level from identity theft continues to present a potential threat for individuals and business entities. The nature of this threat and its continually evolving manifestations continue without significant abatement. The continuing evolution means that need for awareness of identity theft-related issues and its many iterations continues to challenge our society. A defensive strategy to avoid becoming a victim should be a part of the thinking and planning for responsible people and businesses. The use of a credit freeze is one of the tools that residents in all fifty states have available to them. The ability to use credit freezes had long been sought by those who wished to take control of information used to create new credit by identity thieves. Computer security must be robust to avoid damage to the information stored on the computer and to guard against the loss of personally identifying information. IT professionals use a layered defensive strategy to protect their computer installations, individuals and small businesses may develop and use a version of this strategy to reduce vulnerability to the various security threats they face. Synthetic identity theft is an increasingly popular tactic that involves taking only certain elements of personally identifying information and combining them with other information in such a manner as to produce what appears to be a completely new identity. This has become the preferred method of identity theft and this technique is proving to be problematic for credit bureaus. The recent spread of the popularity in social networking has given the identity thieves a new source of information that can be exploited in their pursuit of synthesizing new identities. An increasing number of businesses are marketing solutions to individuals and business to meet the threat posed by the identity thieves. One type of response considered to be a promising tool is known as identity scoring. This is an evolving strategy that relies on a broader number of identifying characteristics than those typically used by credit bureaus in credit monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This article offers a substitute setting to simulate credit rating migrations. The internal correlations model tracks time-series movements within credit rating entries, rather than cross-ratings correlations. The proposed nonhomogeneous process is authenticated through the likelihood ratio Dickey–Fuller test, and is found to be statistically and economically significant, by better fitting observed cumulative default rates. Several nonlinear regression models assist to better identify these time-related patterns. The economic structure underlying the time dependency often corresponds to changes in GDP, business cycles, and market risk. Furthermore, significant positive autocorrelation is detected mostly among downgrade probabilities. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article discusses the device for discerning awards of consumer credit called the scorecard as a market device. The author focuses on how statistical methods, credit data, and banking practices have adapted using scorecard data to produce several market forms. The author contends that each of these market devices stem from a basic scorecard format, yet each has influenced the consumer credit market in differing ways. The author uses the the credit reporting company Fair, Isaac & Company as a test case.

Abstract: In this paper, we test the influence of various fundamental variables on the pricing of credit default swaps. The theoretical determinants that are important for pricing credit default swaps include the risk-free rate, industry sector, credit rating, and liquidity factors. We suggest a linear regression model containing these different variables, especially focusing on liquidity factors. Unlike bond spreads which have been shown to be inversely related to liquidity (i.e., the greater the liquidity, the lower the spread), there is no a priori reason that the credit default swap spread should exhibit the same relationship. This is due to the economic characteristics of a credit default swap compared to a bond. Our empirical result shows that all the fundamental variables investigated have a significant effect on the credit default swap spread. Moreover, our findings suggest that credit default swaps that trade with greater liquidity have a wider credit default swap spread. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article comments on credit scoring. The nature of task forces practitioners to adopt modeling strategies that positively favor simple techniques or limit the possible advantage of sophisticated techniques can be seen in credit scoring. Classical credit scoring is applied at the point of application for a loan to predict the risk of default. In credit scoring, technical progress would be expected and improved decision-making due to better predictive modeling would be valuable.

Abstract: Possible explanations are provided for two basic results in Kräussl''s paper. First, rating effect may be stronger in emerging markets because they are less transparent. Transparency is interpreted in the context of Knightian uncertainty and institutional quality. Emerging markets have lower institutional quality ratings and present greater uncertainty than mature markets, therefore, they are more susceptible to rating agencies’ evaluations. Some empirical evidence on the correlations between institutional quality rankings and portfolio investment is presented. Second, sovereign credit downgrades generate a stronger market reaction than upgrades because decision makers value losses more than gains, as posited by cumulative prospect theory. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]