In this special episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, Celia Winslow, President and CEO of AFSA sits down with the oldest and youngest generation of the family business at 1st Franklin Financial. While both go by Ben Cheek, one is a recent graduate of Auburn University and the newest generation of Cheek serving as a Project Coordinator in the family business. The other, his grandfather and the Chairman Emeritus, Mr. Ben Cheek II...

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, we sit down with Eric Ellman, President at the National Consumer Reporting Association. Ellman has been in the consumer credit and reporting space for almost 30 years and walks us through the history of consumer credit and its interesting anecdotes.

Ellman takes us in a time machine back into the late 19th century to discover how merchant-based credit systems evolved into our modern ...

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, we welcome Tab Edmondson, Senior Director of Lender Solutions at Epic, a new business partner of AFSA. The discussion centers on modernizing loan payoffs and lien release processes, highlighting the challenges dealerships face with multiple lenders and the inefficiencies in current systems. Tab shares insights from his extensive experience in the automotive industry, emphasizing the...

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, we sit down with the elected presidents of the AFSA Education Foundation EDGE and Leadership Development Programs. Joining the conversation are Roman Roberts and Jasmine Carter from Republic Finance, along with Bobby McLendon from Security Finance. Together, they discuss the professional and personal impacts of the EDGE program at Mercer University and the Executive Leadership Progr...

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, AFSA SVP Danielle Arlowe is joined by Jennifer Keys and Matt Isaacson from Covius. The discussion centers on the complexities of vehicle recovery compliance, specifically focusing on proposed legislation in Massachusetts and Colorado and how these bills would impact right-to-cure notices and repossession processes for vehicle finance companies.

Speakers

• Jennifer Keys: Senior Vice ...

AFSA is tackling AI head on in a few short days at the 2026 Independents Conference & Expo – all of our sessions, committees and networking groups will revolve, even in a tangential way, around AI, how the consumer credit industry can get the most out of this emerging technology and what you need to keep your eye out for.

Back in the fall, AFSA moderated a panel at the Annual Meeting about some of the ways AI is already in...

How much of your personal information is available online—and who can access it?

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, we sit down with Ron Zayas, CEO of Ironwall by Incogni, to discuss the growing risks tied to personal data exposure, cyber threats, and executive security.

Fresh off Ironwall's feature on 60 Minutes, Ron explains how his company helps protect executives, employees, and organizations by removing sens...

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, host Dan Bucherer sits down with Andres Klaric, co-founder of Fuse, to explore how artificial intelligence is reshaping the future of lending, loan origination, and customer experience.

Andres shares the story behind Fuse’s evolution—from a direct-to-consumer lending business to an AI-native platform serving banks, credit unions, and finance companies across the U.S.&mdas...

Happy New Year! The AFSA Extra Credit Podcast is back with fresh perspectives, best practices and great conversations with consumer credit industry leaders

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, we chat with Ravi Bajagur from Sigmoid to discuss the role of AI in the financial services sector, particularly in lending. They explore the differences between traditional machine learning and AI, the importance of data quality, ...

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Episode Podcast, we discuss delays and their costs with Adam Fader, Senior Manager, Business Development at MVTRAC and Sam Van Scoyoc, VP of Business Development for Secure Collateral Management (SCM), the combination of which forms AFSA Business Partner DRN MVTRAC SCM.

Lenders lose millions annually from delayed recoveries, impound fees, and depreciation. Many still rely on snail mail notifications...

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, we step aside to let experts take care of a complex legal topic – the Valid When Made Rule. As the Madden v Midland Funding (2015) case turns 10, Steve Obermeier and Jeremy Broggi, Partners with Wiley Rein and Frank Borchert, former CLO/CAO/CRO with Best Egg provide an overview on the rule and walk through some of the history. Then, they talk about the federal regulatory and j...

The Payments Lowdown w/ David Graves @ REPAY

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, we chat with David Graves, VP of Sales with REPAY to get the lowdown on payments. They talk about where the industry stands, some interesting consumer preference trends, new security requirements and the role that AI is playing in the space.

You can read more about REPAY's take on payments on the AFSA Blog. Learn more about REPAY a...

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, we chat with Brian Johnson, Vice President of Revenue Operations with DataScan on audits, how to manage risk and the importance of embracing real-time data. The upshot? If you're waiting for the next audit to manage risk, you're already behind. Dan and Brian look at inventory risk management through the lens of continuous monitoring as well as the tension between the importance of p...

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, we chat with Joe Farley, Chief of Sales with DRN MVTRAC SCM & Damion English, Former Member of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Damion and Joe share their expertise on the importance of up-to-the-second information and double down on the idea that the information is only as good as the action you can take quickly. They also chat about the important role that seamless int...

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, we chat with Stephen McDaniel, CEO of F&I Sentinel, about a critical question: why do so many F&I product refund solutions fail?

Stephen explores the complexities of the refund process and the real-world consequences for lenders who don't get it right. They also break down some of the most common mistakes lenders make along the way.

Stephen also looks into his crystal ball to ...

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, host Dan Bucherer chats with the Presidents of the AFSA Education Foundation EDGE and Leadership Development programs. Sandena Peterson, Chris Reyes and Alan Noel share their perspectives on the importance of both THE EDGE and Leadership Development Program as well as some of the things they've learned. They also share some of the highlights of being elected President by their peers...

In this episode of the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast, host Dan Bucherer chats with Brian Koprowski, CEO of DataScan, which works with finance companies on wholesale financing and inventory risk management across the entire loan lifecycle. See that title? Kind of right in the wheelhouse.

Brian and Dan touch on how the commercial lending landscape has evolved, some of the challenges associated traditional lending models and the value that...

It's been a minute, but the AFSA Extra Credit Podcast is back for 2025 with fresh takes, knowledgeable experts and crucial conversations on the consumer credit industry.

In our first conversation of the year, Dan Bucherer chats with Bryan Chance and Katie Johar of Ernst & Young (EY) and Eva Kellershof of NETSOL on the evolving vehicle purchasing landscape and the direct-to-consumer (DTC) model. Brian and Katie take a deep dive i...