The Standards Are in the Mail: Comparing Credit Card Supply Indicators

John Driscoll, Benjamin S. Kay, Geng Li and Cindy M. Vojtech
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Benjamin S. Kay: https://www.federalreserve.gov/econres/benjamin-s-kay.htm
Cindy M. Vojtech: https://www.federalreserve.gov/econres/cindy-m-vojtech.htm

No 2026-048, Finance and Economics Discussion Series from Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.)

Abstract: We provide the first lender-level analysis linking two independently constructed credit supply measures: the Federal Reserve's Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey (SLOOS) and credit card mail offers from Mintel Comperemedia. Using a matched panel of 73 banks from 2000 to 2019, we find that quarterly mail volume growth was 18 percent lower when banks reported tightening credit card lending standards, a relationship robust to including credit demand indicators. In addition, SLOOS responses on credit limits and interest rate spreads are also correlated with these terms observed in mail offers. Our findings validate both measures as informative credit supply indicators.

Keywords: credit availability; credit standards; offer rates (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: E51 G21 G28 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 18 p.
Date: 2026-07-02
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:fip:fedgfe:103518

DOI: 10.17016/FEDS.2026.048

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