consumer-finance

Marketplace lenders are aggressively marketing their loans as a way to refinance expensive credit card debt. And with more affordable interest rates and faster loan application processes, there's reason to believe that firms like Lending Club and SoFi will beat out banks.

A number of companies across the U.S. are harnessing technology to solve Americans' cash flow challenges. But there is much more to be done to bring these solutions to the millions of Americans who need them.

Three major credit agencies are overhauling the way they resolve disputes and report unpaid medical debt. ThatÂ's a good start, but the best way to wipe out credit-reporting errors is to encourage Americans to review them regularly.

A new service from Cardtronics asks consumers to pay up to $10 a month for unlimited access to 5,000 of the company's ATMs. That may not sound like a great deal Â-- but it could have a lot of appeal among people who make use of alternative financial services.

The finance and technology industries should take some of the energy they've poured into mobile payments and put it toward making small-dollar loans more affordable.