Search Results
Report
Consumers and Mobile Financial Services 2014
Mobile phones have increasingly become tools that consumers use for banking, payments, budgeting, and shopping. Given the rapid pace of developments in the area of mobile finance, the Federal Reserve Board began conducting annual surveys of consumers’ use of mobile financial services in 2011. The survey examines trends in adoption and use of mobile banking and payments, and how the emergence of mobile financial services affects how consumers interact with financial institutions. This report presents findings from the 2013 survey, which examined consumers’ use of mobile technology to ...
Working Paper
State Mandated Financial Education and the Credit Behavior of Young Adults
In the U.S., a number of states have mandated personal finance classes in public school curricula to address perceived deficiencies in financial decision-making competency. Despite the growth of financial and economic education provided in public schools, little is known about the effect of these programs on the credit behaviors of young adults. Using a panel of credit report data, we examine young adults in three states where personal financial education mandates were implemented in 2007: Georgia, Idaho, and Texas. We compare the credit scores and delinquency rates of young adults in each of ...
Report
Consumers and Mobile Finance Services 2013
Mobile devices have increasingly become tools that consumers use for banking, payments, budgeting, and shopping. In December 2011, the Federal Reserve Board conducted its first survey of consumers’ use of mobile financial services, and released a summary report in March 2012 (referred to as the 2011 survey). Given the rapid pace of developments in the area of mobile finance, the Board conducted a second survey in late November 2012 to examine trends in adoption and use of mobile banking and payments (referred to as the 2012 survey). This report presents findings from the 2012 online survey, ...
Working Paper
Does Salient Financial Information Affect Academic Performance and Borrowing Behavior among College Students?
While rising student loan debt can plague college students future finances, few federal programs have been instituted to educate college students on the mechanics of student loan borrowing. This paper exploits a natural experiment in which some students received "Know Your Debt" letters with incentivized offers for one-on-one financial counseling. Montana State University students who reached a specific debt threshold received these letters; University of Montana students did not. We use a difference-in-difference-in-differences strategy to compare students above and below the thresholds ...
Report
Consumers and Mobile Financial Services 2012
Mobile devices have increasingly become tools that consumers use for banking, payments, budgeting, and shopping. This report presents findings from an online survey, conducted in December 2011 and January 2012, examining the use of mobile technology to access financial services and make financial decisions.
Working Paper
How House Price Dynamics and Credit Constraints affect the Equity Extraction of Senior Homeowners
Households can borrow against equity through different channels, including home equity lines of credit (HELOCs), second liens, cash-out refinancing, and--for senior homeowners--reverse mortgages. We use data from the New York Federal Reserve/Equifax Consumer Credit Panel, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and other sources to jointly estimate the decision to extract equity through these different channels. Specifically, we identify the influence of credit constraints, house price dynamics and their interactions on the proportion of seniors in a ZIP code extracting through ...
Report
Report on the Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households in 2013
Many households in the United States have been tested by the Great Recession. Large-scale financial strain at the household level ultimately fed into broader economic challenges for the country, and the completion of the national recovery will ultimately be, in part, a reflection of the well-being of households and consumers. Because households’ finances can change at a rapid pace and new opportunities and risks may emerge, such recovery can be complex to monitor. To better understand the financial state of U.S. households, the Federal Reserve Board conducted a new consumer survey, the ...
Journal Article
Use of financial services by the unbanked and underbanked and the potential for mobile financial services adoption
The increased use of mobile devices coupled with the evolution of technologies that enable consumers to conduct financial transactions using mobile phones has the potential to change how consumers manage their finances. Innovations in financial service technologies may also help foster access and inclusion in the mainstream financial system for unbanked or underbanked consumers. Using data collected through the Board?s Survey of Consumers and Mobile Financial Services, this article examines the characteristics of unbanked and underbanked consumers, their current use of mobile financial ...
Report
Consumers and Mobile Finance Services 2014
Mobile phones have increasingly become tools that consumers use for banking, payments, budgeting, and shopping. Given the rapid pace of developments in the area of mobile finance, the Federal Reserve Board began conducting annual surveys of consumers’ use of mobile financial services in 2011. The survey examines trends in adoption and use of mobile banking and payments, and how the emergence of mobile financial services affects how consumers interact with financial institutions. This report presents findings from the 2013 survey, which examined consumers’ use of mobile technology to ...
Report
Consumers and Mobile Finance Services 2012
Mobile devices have increasingly become tools that consumers use for banking, payments, budgeting, and shopping. This report presents findings from an online survey, conducted in December 2011 and January 2012, examining the use of mobile technology to access financial services and make financial decisions.