insideARM.com
Kaulkin Media is the most credible and entertaining publisher of specialized news and opinion for the accounts receivable management (ARM, or “debt collection”) industry, and also specializes in helping ARM businesses to define their brand and marketing strategies. insideARM.com is the firm’s flagship website, with over 70,000 subscribers including collection agencies and law firms, debt buyers, creditors, suppliers of technology and services to these groups, regulators, industry investors, and many other interested parties.
Recent Posts
FMS and DialConnection Mark Two Years of Shared Success
DialConnection, LLC, an international leader in providing contact center solutions, working together with Financial Management Systems (FMS), which provides best-in-class revenue enhancement services to both government and private sector clients, marked two successful years of shared success. “After an extensive search process, only one company came in with the right product andstressed the concept of [...]
FTC Halts $5 million Debt Collection Scam Operating in India
Several of our favorite things make a guest appearance in today’s top story: the FTC, payday loans, fake policemen, and questionable debts. The scam collection agency took in about $5 million before FINALLY running afoul of the law. The story is definitely worth your read, and you’ll get to meet our newest villain, Varang K. Thaker.
Collection Agency Adds 250 Jobs, $2.5 Million to Local Economy
Plaza Recovery, a New York-based accounts receivable management company, recently acquired a Kentucky collection agency and plans on investing $2.5 million into the local economy and adding about 250 jobs. The new company is the creation of a merger between Plaza Associates, a Plaza Recovery subsidiary, and the Kentucky-based ACB American. The new company will [...]
U.S. District Court Preliminarily Approves Class Action Settlement in Action Against Debt Collector
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio granted preliminary approval to a class action settlement for unlawful debt collection practices by a law firm based in Lebanon, Ohio. The class action lawsuit was brought by the law firm of Minnillo & Jenkins, Co. LPA on behalf of Zachary Langendorfer. The complaint alleges that [...]
TransUnion to Be Acquired by Goldman Sachs Investment Arm and Buyout Group
TransUnion to be acquired by buyout firm Advent International and GS Capital Partners in a deal that values TransUnion at more than $3 billion.
NCO Group Adding Over 300 Positions to St. Joseph, Missouri Contact Center
NCO Group, Inc., a leading provider of business process outsourcing services, announced today that it will hire approximately 300 individuals in its Customer Contact Center located in St. Joseph, Missouri. The hiring will coincide with client expansion opportunities for two Fortune 500 Clients.
Minnesota Commerce Department Fines NCO Group $250,000 for Hiring Felons
Though short on subtlety and nuance — the lead is “Commerce Department working to keep convicted felons out of your wallet” — our lead story is a release from the Minnesota Commerce Department and puts NCO Group back in the headlines. Turns out, in Minnesota, you’re not allowed to hire convicted felons to be debt collectors. (Insert consumer-related joke here.) At least not for five years after release. If NCO had better screening practices, the Commerce Department argues, this wouldn’t be an issue because the screening process would have identified these felons.
Oh. And there’s this: “In addition…a collection management team member also allegedly stole company funds from a debt collector incentive program.”
Executive Changes: Several Agencies Add Compliance, Quality Assurance Positions
Executive Change: Joshua Schreiner to Columbia Ultimate as Compliance Officer Columbia Ultimate, an expert in technology and integrated solutions for the collection industry, recently named Joshua Schreiner, Esq., as compliance officer. Schreiner will act as Columbia Ultimate’s in-house counsel and will oversee the company’s compliance in conjunction with federal and collection industry regulations. He will [...]
FTC to Hold Press Conference on Fake Debt Collector
The FTC late Thursday announced that it is holding a press conference next week to discuss a case involving a fake debt collector that used a call center in India to persuade people to pay debts they did not owe.
CFPB Proposes Rule to Supervise Large Debt Collectors
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau today announced a proposed rule to include debt collectors and consumer reporting agencies under its nonbank supervision program.
Under the proposed rule, debt collectors with more than $10 million in annual receipts from debt collection activities would be subject to supervision.