Alright. So maybe Taco Bell isn’t handing out student loans in their drive-thru (yet), but I have something just as amusing and creative to share with you.
On February 1st, 2014 Senator Elizabeth Warren wrote an op-ed in the Huffington Post titled “Coming To A Post Office Near You: Loans You Can Trust.” In the article, Senator Warren is supporting an innovative way for the United States’ Postal Service to provide financial services to the “unbanked” and “underbanked” in our country. These financial services, such as check cashing and bill payment, wouldn’t necessarily compete with traditional banking services, rather it would reduce the reliance on predatory businesses such as PayDay Lenders.
I would normally take this opportunity to highlight how Senator Warren is batsh*t crazy and has no business being a part of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), but she may be onto something here. Within this unique idea, there are creative ways to serve the “unbanked” while also increasing much-needed revenue for the postal service; but, there are also some question marks and causes for concern. I will highlight these positives and negatives in an upcoming article.
Until then, I recommend you check out the white paper written by the Office of the Inspector General of the US Postal Service which outlines how the US postal service could provide financial services to the underserved. It’s 27 pages of boring nonsense extreme awesomeness.
