Cox Automotive reported this week that auto financing availability in April was the most accessible since April 2020, according to the Dealertrack Auto Credit Availability Index. But analysts acknowledged that making year-over-year comparisons is challenging, since they’re versus the outset of the pandemic. The index reading increased 0.4% to 98.4 in April, reflecting that credit […] [Read More]

Evidently, the rapid transformation toward online interactions and transactions by dealerships and lenders in Canada is easier said than done — even after a full year of COVID-19 realities. According to the J.D. Power 2021 Canada Dealer Financing Satisfaction Study released on Thursday, 49% of Canadian dealerships saw an increase in online sales during the […] [Read More]

It may only be a coincidence that the fastest-selling used vehicles in April were also, quite simply, the fastest vehicles. Or maybe not. It was warming up outside — great for driving a sports car — and as iSeeCars.com executive analyst Karl Brauer said in an analysis, “High-performance vehicles have been popular during the pandemic as […] [Read More]

Perhaps fueled in part by the revenue generated by their used-vehicle departments, two of the publicly traded dealer groups are sharing the financial success with their shareholders. This week, both Penske Automotive Group and Group 1 Automotive announced plans for dividends. According to a news release from Penske, the company’s board of directors has increased […] [Read More]

The pandemic certainly impacted Hertz Global Holdings as much as any company with a connection to vehicles. But the company shared several positive developments in recent days, including the closing of its Donlen sale, more than $1 billion in first quarter revenue as well as how its exit from Chapter 11 bankruptcy will be funded. […] [Read More]

AUL Corp. reinforced its executive leadership this week to ensure the F&I provider remains on solid financial footing. First, AUL appointed industry veteran Dennis Mara as the firm’s new chief financial officer after four months of serving in the position on an interim basis as he led the successful implementation of the firm’s new accounting […] [Read More]

In April, the American Financial Services Association announced the official formation of its Diversity and Inclusion Working Group to enhance its efforts to foster a culture of diversity and inclusion within the financial services industry.   Prabir Chakrabarty, vice president and associate general at Mariner Finance, is serving as the group’s chair, and Kristen Miller, […] [Read More]

REPAY made a significant increase in its collections capabilities this week, announcing it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire BillingTree for approximately $503 million. According to a news release, the acquisition will be financed with approximately $275 million in cash from REPAY’s balance sheet and $228 million in newly issued shares of REPAY Class […] [Read More]

While its net loss and other metrics were on par with expectations, CarLotz had stronger first-quarter retail sales and net revenues than expected. Reporting Q1 results Monday, the consignment-to-retail used-vehicle marketplace moved 2,554 retail units in Q1, beating the year-ago period’s 1,453 retail vehicle sales. CarLotz’s previous guidance had called for 1,900 to 2,100 retail […] [Read More]

Shift is selling cars in Texas for the first time. The used-vehicle ecommerce platform said Monday that consumers in the Austin-San Antonio region can buy and sell cars through Shift. Consumers could already sell their vehicles to Shift in four of the state’s markets, but this move marks the first full-service market where they can […] [Read More]