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Discussion Paper
High and Dry: Banking Deserts Increased in the Fifth District During the Pandemic
The number of U.S. bank branches has been shrinking for years, but the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the rate of closures. After the Riegle-Neal Interstate Banking and Branching Efficiency Act of 1994 allowed banks to open branches across state lines, branch networks spread steadily across the country. That expansion continued until the Great Recession, after which banks moved from growing their physical footprints to increasing their automated services, like ATMs and online banking.
Journal Article
Features: The Rise of Buy Now, Pay Later Plans
Chances are, while shopping at an online retailer, you might have encountered buy now, pay later (BNPL) payment options such as Klarna or Afterpay at checkout. Maybe you've even used BNPL before — after all, smoothing out a large-haul purchase over time sounds a lot nicer than paying all at once. This relatively new form of credit differs from traditional credit cards and their revolving lines of credit through its spread-out installments, usually fixed at four. BNPL requires an initial down payment with loans typically between $50 and $1,000 and is offered through specific retailers, tying ...
Discussion Paper
Is the Inflation Process in Advanced Economies Different After the Pandemic?
Nearly six years after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, headline consumer price inflation has declined substantially from its 2021–2022 peaks in the United States, the euro area, Canada, and the United Kingdom. In several economies inflation has moved closer to central bank targets, yet price pressures remain elevated across a broad set of goods and services relative to the pre-pandemic period.