FCA proposes rules to address persistent credit card debt

The proposals follows the regulator's study of the UK credit card market, which found significant concerns about the scale, extent and nature of problem credit card debt. The FCA has estimated some 3.3 million people are in persistent debt, with more than half - 1.8 million - for two consecutive periods of 18 months. Its new proposals require firms to take steps to help customers repay their balances more quickly and to offer further assistance to those who cannot. Under the FCA's definition, credit card customers are in persistent debt if they have paid more in interest and charges t...