Filed In:
Non-Bank Lenders
These institutions are not banks, but either extend loans, securitize bank loans or otherwise play roles in the extension of credit, long-term or short-term. Some may have chosen to reorganize themselves as bank holding companies as a strategic move to weather the credit crisis of 2007-08, by which means they become eligible for federal capital infusions aimed at shoring up the banking sector.
Ally Financial
Ally Financial is the new corporate name for GMAC.
American Express
American Express is a leading credit card and travel services company. Decades of aggressive advertising have made it one of the leading international brand names across all industries. American Express also regularly appears on surveys of the best companies to work for.
Art Financing
Art financing is the extension of credit using art as collateral. Players in this market include both large financial institutions looking to accommodate their wealthiest clients, as well as independent firms specializing in this sort of lending. This niche also includes firms that guarantee minimum sales prices at auction.
Chrysler Financial
TD Bank announced its intent to purchase and revive Chrysler Financial in December 2010.
Credit Unions
Credit unions are non-profit cooperative financial institutions owned by and operated for the sole benefit of their members. Credit unions fill a role similar to that of banks, taking in deposits and making loans.
Factoring
Factoring is a financing option in which firms raise cash either by selling their accounts receivable at a discount or by pledging their receivables as collateral for a loan.
Fannie Mae
Fannie Mae is the Federal National Mortgage Association, or FNMA, chartered in 1938 to increase the supply of mortgage credit by buying mortgages from banks. Mounting worries about its solvency led to a 2008 takeover by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA). An aggressive new CEO is working swiftly and decisively to clean up the organization and restore its creditworthiness.
Federal Home Loan Banks
The Federal Home Loan Banks are a source of low-cost funding for financial institutions engaged in mortgage, small business and agricultural lending. Established by Congress in 1932, the Federal Home Loan Banks are cooperative institutions owned and managed on behalf of member financial institutions.
Ford Credit
Ford Credit (also known as Ford Motor Credit) is the financing arm of the Ford Motor Company. Its sole business is making loans to facilitate the purchase of vehicles produced by Ford and its subsidiaries.
Freddie Mac
Freddie Mac, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, or FHLMC, is chartered to increase the supply of mortgage funding by purchasing mortages from banks. After being taken under direct federal control on September 7, 2008, new management is working hard to clean up organizational problems and restore fiscal integrity.
GE
General Electric, or GE, is a major player in the financial industry through its GE Commercial Finance and GE Money business lines, often collectively referred to as GE Capital in the press.
GMAC
GMAC is a major lending institution that has expanded beyond its original market in automotive finance to include also real estate financing, insurance, commercial financing and online banking.
Industrial Loan Companies
Industrial loan companies are subsidiaries of larger corporations whose main purpose is to facilitate sales of the parent companies' products by extending loans to customers. As a result, industrial loan companies function in a manner very similar to banks.
Peer to Peer Lending
Peer to peer lending (or P2P) involves online platforms for matching borrowers and lenders, circumventing the banks. Crowd funding is a related phenomenon discussed here.
Purchase Order Financing
Purchase order financing is a financing option for resellers or distributors of hard goods that lack the funds to pay their manufacturers.
Sallie Mae
Sallie Mae, the Student Loan Marketing Association, or SLMA, manages the world's largest portfolio of student loans, and is a major provider of Section 529 educational savings accounts. Originally created by Congress, it is now a completely independent for-profit corporation. Its subsidiaries include Upromise, best known for a program that...
Wholesale Credit Unions
Wholesale credit unions do not deal with the general public. Instead, they provide essential back office operations support to retail credit unions.
Kabbage
As Internet commerce grows, so do the number of small sellers who have difficulty obtaining bank finance. Kabbage is a start up that is utilizing advanced decision support systems to steal a march on the banks in extending credit to this market.