Capital one

Credit Card Specialization (1994-2004)

On July 27, 1994, Signet Financial Corp announced the spin-off of its OakStone Financial credit card division in Richmond , Virginia , appointing Richard Fairbank as CEO ^[11] (Signet Banking Corp is now part of Wells Fargo ). Signet renamed one of its subsidiaries to Capital One in October 1994. ^[12] The release was completed on February 28, 1995, making Capital One completely independent. ^[13]

Unlike other diversified financial companies, Capital One started as a “monoline,” that is, the vast majority of its business was engaged in consumer lending , in particular credit cards. Remaining a monoline is risky, because in good times it can be very profitable, and in bad times it can be unprofitable. Most consumer monolines over the past twenty years have either gone out of business (for example, The Money Store, NextCard, Royal Acceptance), or have been acquired (for example, MBNA, Beneficial, First USA); Capital One is notable for not having disappeared and was not bought. ^{[14] [15]}

Capital One explains its relative success as a monoline in the use of data collection to build demographic profiles, which has made it possible to target personalized loan offers directly to consumers. ^{[15] [16]}

In 1999, Capital One sought to expand its business beyond credit cards. Richard Fairbank announced his intention to use Capital One's experience in collecting consumer data for loans, insurance and telephone services. ^[17]

Expansion of retail banking services (from 2005 to present)

Despite the fact that many other monolines were acquired by larger and more diverse banks, Capital One has expanded the retail banking sector with a focus on sub-standard customers. This was achieved through the acquisition of several retail banks. In 2005, Capital One acquired the Hibernia National Bank, based in New Orleans , Louisiana , and the New York Corporation North Fork Bancorporation ^{[18] [19]} , in 2008.
was acquired by Chevy Chase Bank. ^{[20] [21]}

During the 2007 mortgage financial crisis , Capital One closed its GreenPoint Mortgage mortgage platform, in part due to investor pressure. ^{[22] [23]} Capital One Financial Corporation received US $ 3.56 billion under the Economic Stabilization Act in 2008. ^{[24] [25]} On June 17, 2009, Capital One completed the repurchase of shares that the company issued to the US Treasury , paying a total of $ 3.67 billion. ^[26] The US Securities and Exchange Commission criticized the behavior of Capital One during the crisis. , stating that the company was unable to provide accurate information about the losses incurred by them. Capital One was supposed to pay $ 3.5 million in fines, but he was not required to directly file allegations of wrongdoing. ^[27]

In June 2011, ING announced the sale of its US subsidiary, ING Direct, to Capital One for $ 9 billion in cash and shares. ^[28] On August 26, 2011, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System announced a public hearing on the acquisition of ING Direct and the extension of the transaction until October 12, 2011. ^[29] In February 2012, this acquisition was approved by regulators, and Capital One completed the acquisition of ING Direct. ^[30] Capital One received permission to integrate ING Direct into its business in October 2012, ^[31] and permission to rebrand ING Direct as Capital One 360 ​​in November 2012. ^[32]

In August 2011, Capital One agreed with HSBC to acquire credit card transactions in the United States. ^[33] Capital One paid $ 31.3 billion in exchange for $ 28.2 billion in loans and $ 600 million in other assets. The acquisition was completed by May 2012. ^[34]

In July 2012, Capital One was fined by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Consumer Protection Bureau for misleading millions of its customers, for example, payment protection fees or credit monitoring, when they took out a card. ^[35] The company agreed
to pay $ 210 million to settle a lawsuit against them and recover two million customers. ^[36] This was the first public enforcement action by CFPB. ^[37] In August 2014, Capital One and three collection agencies entered into a $ 75.5 million agreement to put an end to the joint collective litigation pending before the United States District Court in the Northern District of Illinois that the company used automated dialing on mobile phones without consent, which is a violation
The 1991 Consumer Protection Act. ^[38] It is noteworthy that this lawsuit concerned informational telephone calls that are not subject to the “prior written consent” requirements that have been introduced for telemarketing calls since October 2013. ^[39]

Like many other retail banking companies, Capital One is gradually reducing the number of its physical places. ^[40] In 2012, the company closed 41 branches, and opened 2. ^[41]

On July 8, 2015, Capital One announced the acquisition of Monsoon (design studio, development workshop, marketing department and strategic consulting). ^[42]

In August 2015, Capital One agreed to acquire the financial services division of General Electric Co. for $ 9 billion. The deal involves raising loans of $ 8.5 billion for a wide range of sectors, including old housing, hospitals, medical offices, outpatient services, pharmaceuticals and medical devices. ^[43]

In October 2016, Capital One acquired Paribus, a price tracking service, for an undisclosed amount. ^[44]

2014 Terms of Service

In 2014, Capital One amended its terms of service to create for itself the right to “contact you in any way convenient for us”, including “a personal visit ... at your home and at your workplace”. The amendments also affirm the right to “change or suppress the caller ID and similar services, and to identify ourselves with respect to these services in any way we choose.” ^[45]

Capital One explained its claim to the right to “cheat” as necessary, as “sometimes the number is displayed differently on some local telephone exchanges,” and “something is not under our control.” ^[46]

Capital One Auto Finance

Capital One Auto Financial Corporation is the parent company of Capital One Auto Finance Company, located in Plyno , Texas . ^[47] The company includes Summit Acceptance Corporation, which was acquired by Capital One in July 1998, and PeopleFirst Finance LLC, which was acquired in October 2001. The companies were merged and renamed as Capital One Auto Finance Corporation in 2003. ^[48] Since 2012, Capital One Auto Finance has been the largest online car lender, as well as one of the largest US car lenders in general. ^[49]

A company that used to sell car loans only through direct mail and car dealers allows car advertisers to refinance existing car loans, and buyers apply for new car loans online. The decision usually comes within 15 minutes, after which the buyer receives a “check form” to the approved amount of the car loan, which the buyer uses to buy a car. For the dealership, it is as if the buyer paid in cash. Checks can be used to buy a new or used car or to refinance an existing car loan with another lender.

CapitalOne 360

CapitalOne 360 ​​is an online banking division of Capital One. This division arose in a separate company, ING Direct, which was founded in 2000 in Wilmington , Delaware , as a brand for a direct subsidiary bank. In September 2007, ING Direct acquired 104,000 customers and FDIC insured assets from the failed NetBank virtual bank. ^[50] Two months later, ING Direct acquired the Sharebuilder, an online stock broker. ^{[51] [52]}

Capital One National Direct Bank

This is online banking from Capital One, which used to offer various depository services, such as checking accounts and accounts in the money market. This Capital One division no longer accepts new customers due to the acquisition of ING Direct and the introduction of Capital One 360. Costco offered various partnerships and promotions for these accounts.

In June 2011, Capital One Financial Corporation acquired ING Direct USA from ING Group ( Netherlands ), paying $ 9 billion. ^[53] Sale agreed
On June 16, 2011, the CEO of ING Group at the time, Jan Homman, announced that the sale “marks another important step in the restructuring of the ING Group. At the same time, we say goodbye to a very successful Business and a special team ... ". ^[54] Following the acquisition, ING Direct was renamed Capital One 360. ^[55]

Level Money

In January 2015, Capital One acquired Level Money, a budgeting app for consumers. The application will remain a standalone application . ^[56]

Paribus

In October 2016, Capital One acquired Paribus, a consumer price tracking service. The application will remain a standalone application. ^[44]

Units in Canada and the UK

Capital One began operations in Canada in 1996. Their head office is located in Toronto , Ontario , in downtown North York along Yonge Street and Finch Avenue. Unlike its diversified American parent, Canadian business does not operate outside the credit card market. In October 2008, Capital One Canada was named Mediacorp Canada Inc. one of Greater Toronto's largest employers. ^[57]

The British headquarters of Capital One is in Nottingham . Capital One in the UK is associated with customers with poor credit ratings and very high APR credit cards, up to 35%. ^[58] The company was once active in Spain, Italy, France, and South Africa, but has since left these markets.

Since 2001, Capital One has been the main sponsor of the Florida Citrus Bowl Football Club, then renamed the Capital One Bowl in 2003. Capital One is one of the three largest sponsors of the National University Sports Association , annually paying $ 35 million in exchange for advertising and access to consumer data. ^{[59] [60]} Capital One also sponsored the English Football League Cup, known as the “Capital One Cup” from 2012 to 2016.

USPS Agreements

At the end of 2002, Capital One and the United States Postal Service entered into an agreement on contractual services based on experimental agreements for wholesale discounts in postal services. ^[61] As a result, the three-year agreement ^[62] was extended in 2006. ^[9]

Payment Isis Mobile Wallet

On February 26, 2012, along with several other banks, Capital One announced support for the Isis Mobile Wallet payment system. ^[63] However, in September 2013, Capital One refused to support this venture. ^[64]

ClearXchange

On February 19, 2014, Capital One became the owner of a 1/4 stake in ClearXchange; - P2P money transfer services (from person to person), intended for money transfers to customers within the same bank and other financial institutions by mobile phone number or email address. The service became available to Capital One Bank customers in the second half of 2014. Other ClearXchange owners are Bank of America , Wells Fargo and JP Morgan Chase . ^[65]

Split Debit Card

In May 2007, the company began an experiment that became known as a split debit card. ^{[66] [67]} This card is new in that, prior to this launch, a debit card has always been tied to a traditional financial institution, such as a bank or credit union.

The split Visa Capital card from CapitalOne did not require opening an account with a “trading” financial institution and was carried out in partnership with Ukrop's supermarkets, a grocery chain in Richmond, and Sheetz regional gas stations. Ukrop's card has also been tied to the grocer's reward program.

This one-year experiment ended in May 2008 ^[68] and was accompanied by a national rollout of its own version of a split debit card tied to its own reward program. ^[69]

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