Truist exits near-prime auto lending as Circle launches Arc blockchain
Market shifts and corporate announcements drove trading activity this week, with investors reacting to strategic changes at major financial institutions and fintech companies. Several firms signaled a shift in focus toward higher-margin products, while others expanded their digital infrastructure.
Strategic pivots in lending and fintech
Truist Financial is exiting the near-prime auto lending space. The bank announced it will sell $5.5 billion of auto loans and cover substantially all assets at Regional Acceptance Corporation. This move is part of a broader effort to redirect capital toward more profitable commercial banking relationships while reducing credit risk and wholesale funding needs.
The portfolio sale aligns with a strategy of concentrating on core banking strengths. The source notes that Regional Acceptance Corporation was roughly break-even in the first half, making the exit logical for a bank seeking to tie up less capital in lower-performing segments.
Circle has launched Arc, a new blockchain focused on real-time money movement and financial markets. The platform connects to Circle’s USDC and Agent Stack, extending stablecoin infrastructure into the transaction layer for agentic commerce. The network launched with over 100 partners.
This development represents a structural change in how automated agents may handle economic transactions. By creating rails for payments and settlement that do not require direct human intervention, Circle is positioning its stablecoin infrastructure to serve the needs of a machine-driven economy.
Expanding financial ecosystems
J.P. Morgan Chase is allowing eligible cardholders to convert Ultimate Rewards points into cash for investment. The feature enables redemption through J.P. Morgan Self-Directed Investing accounts or advisor-managed taxable accounts, adding a new option alongside existing travel, cash back, and statement credit redemptions.
Wells Fargo has integrated ExpressSend Mobile into its banking app. Customers can now send money from the United States to recipients in 12 countries through bank accounts or cash pickup locations. The feature allows users to track transfers in real time and manage recipients without leaving the primary banking application.
Technology improving lending decisions
Affirm has deployed a transformer-based underwriting model at U.S. checkouts. The system can approve applicants its previous models would have rejected, including those with thin credit files or no FICO score. Built on 14 years of transaction-level lending data, the model achieved a 3.4% increase in completed purchases while maintaining comparable risk levels.
