Decrease in California Payday Loan Activity
OAKLAND, CALIF. – California’s Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) this week released a report revealing that the state’s payday lenders made fewer than 6.1 million loans with a value of $1.68 billion in 2020, which represents a 40 percent decline overall and a 30 percent decline in customers from 2019. The decrease can be attributed to several factors, including stimulus checks issued by the federal government, local moratoriums on payments and loan forbearances during the COVID-19 pandemic. The decline is consistent with trends in other states and other forms of consumer