The Banker Next Door

Episode 324: Should you consider investing in TIPS?

This episode examines a recent article from The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) titled “Inflation isn’t going away? Some tips on how to buy TIPS.” TIPS stands for Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities. TIPS can be a great investment if you are worried about keeping up with inflation. TIPS can be particularly useful, as an investment, if you are approaching retirement. We also examine the Treasury Direct website and look at various products on the website including Treasury Bills, Treasury Notes, Treasury Bonds, and Savings Bonds. Links to The Wall Street Journal article and the Treasury Direct website are included below.  
Link: Inflation Isn’t Going Away? Some Tips on How to Buy TIPS - WSJ
Link: Home — TreasuryDirect

Episode 323: How does the US Treasury feel about AI in financial services?

This episode examines a report from the U.S. Department of the Treasury titled “Artificial Intelligence in Financial Services.” The report highlights uses, opportunities, and risks of AI in the financial services sector. Some of the potential risks highlighted include data privacy, security, quality standards, bias, explainability, hallucinations, impact on consumers, concentration-related risks, third-party risks, and illicit finance risks. The report also provides recommendations on how the financial services industry should proceed with AI in the future. A link to the report is included below.   
Link: Artificial-Intelligence-in-Financial-Services.pdf

Episode 322: Crypto romance scams grew 40% in 2024! (Crypto Series Part XV)

This episode examines two reports, one from the SEC titled “Fiscal Year 2024 Report on Activities” and one from Chainalysis titled “Crypto Scam Revenue 2024: Pig Butchering Grows Nearly 40% YoY as Fraud Industry Leverages AI and Increases in Sophistication.” Crypto fraud has seen a massive increase in recent years but Pig Butchering and other so called romance scams have become increasingly popular by fraudsters. Anyone can fall victim to these scams, so it is critical to understand how they work and how they are perpetrated on victims. Links to both reports are included below.  
Link: 2024 Pig Butchering Crypto Scam Revenue Grows 40% YoY as Industry Increases Sophistication
Link: SEC OIAD Report on Activities: Fiscal Year 2025

BND: Strategy Room 2-15-2025

The Banker Next Door (BND) weekly live stream show. Strategy Room provides financial news, commentary, top stories in the business world, economic indicators, and all things banking for the week.

Episode 321: What is going on with auto repossession?

This episode examines a recent report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) that was issued in January 2025 titled “Repossession in Auto Finance.” In February 2023, the CFPB launched the auto finance data pilot to obtain data from various auto lenders regarding accounts originated or with servicing activity from January 1, 2018, through December 31, 2022. The level of available data on repossessions is significantly less compared to other credit markets. This study sought to provide more information around types of borrowers, how they may lose access to their vehicles, the consequences of vehicle loss, and repossession fees. A link to the report is included below.
Link: Repossession in Auto Finance

Episode 320: Who is collecting data on you? A list of consumer reporting companies

This episode examines a recent report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) that was issued in January 2025 titled “List of Consumer Reporting Companies.” Consumer reporting companies collect your personal data to provide reports to other companies about your activities. These companies use these reports to provide you with credit, employment, residential rental housing, and insurance. It is critical to know the companies that are collecting data on you and why. A link to the report is included below.
Link: cfpb_consumer-reporting-companies_list_2025.pdf

Episode 319: Open Banking discussion with Mickey Marshall from ICBA

This episode is a discussion with Mickey Marshall, who is the Assistant Vice President, Regulatory Counsel for the Independent Community Bankers Association (ICBA), about the 1033 rule aka Open Banking. We discussed the origins of Open Banking, how we got to where we are today, the need for ICBA to create a Guide to Open Banking, and why every banker should care about Open Banking. We concluded the discussion by talking about the role of FDX and how things might play out over the next 6-12 months. Links to ICBA’s website, the Open Banking Guide, and FDX’s website are included below.
Link: Independent Community Bankers of America - ICBA
Link: adv_2353a24_icba-open-banking-guidebook.pdf
Link: www.financialdataexchange.org

Episode 318: What types of payments did small businesses use in 2024?

This episode examines a recent report from the Federal Reserve Banks that was issued in December of 2024 titled “2024 Report on Payments: Findings from the 2023 Small Business Credit Survey.” For small businesses, customer payments are the primary source of available cash. Some of the key findings in the report include roughly four out of five small firms face challenges related to these payments, payment processing fees continue to be an issue, and main payment channels continue to be checks, cards, cash, and ACH. A link to the report is included below.  
Link: 2024 Report on Payments: Findings from the 2023 Small Business Credit Survey

Episode 317: ABA Blueprint for 2025

This episode examines the American Bankers Association (ABA) blueprint for growth in 2025 and beyond. As ABA celebrates its 150th anniversary, the organization has three main goals for 2025. 1) Focus on the following actions: tax policy, ACRE, mission-driven banks, housing, and fraud. 2) Pursue rational regulations to preserve main street access to credit and capital. 3) Foster a competitive financial services market. Links to the ABA website and the blueprint for growth in 2025 are attached below.   
Link: www.aba.com
Link: 2025-blueprint-growth.pdf

BND: Strategy Room 2-7-2025

The Banker Next Door (BND) weekly live stream show. Strategy Room provides financial news, commentary, top stories in the business world, economic indicators, and all things banking for the week.