A debt buyer is a firm that purchases debt from another company, usually a creditor or bank, at a deeply discounted rate. The debt purchaser then attempts to collect the debt through its own operations or through the use of a third-party debt collection agency. Some debt buyers may sell all or part of the debt to another party at a profit. Most debt buyers are small and privately held, though there is a handful of publicly traded debt buying companies. Recent changes in law and legal rulings have seen the debt buying industry regulated like collection agencies, or servicers of debt, rather than creditors, or owners of the debt. Debt buyers must adhere to the FDCPA.

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Weekly Wrap-Up Podcast - Week of October 24

30 October 2011

Debt Buyer Barred from Collection Activities in West Virginia

28 October 2011

Portfolio Recovery Associates Reports Large Gain in Net Income in Q3

28 October 2011

Encore Capital Discloses Another State Investigation as Profits Rise in Q3

27 October 2011

Acumen Insurance Services Expands Advisory Board with Addition of Leading ARM Industry Executive

27 October 2011

Encore Capital Group to Announce Third Quarter Results on October 26th

25 October 2011

Massachusetts Set to Overrule Past Foreclosures; Harbinger for ARM Industry?

25 October 2011

Portfolio Recovery Associates Named One of Forbes' Best Small Companies in America

25 October 2011

Executive Change: Matthew Saperstein Named SVP at PCA Acquisitions V

21 October 2011

State Agency Publishes New Rules for Debt Collectors

20 October 2011

Protester Believes He Was Thwarted By Judge in Arbitration Talks with Collection Agency

19 October 2011

Asset Acceptance to Host Third Quarter Conference Call November 1

19 October 2011

ACA International Proposes Major Changes to Governance Structure

18 October 2011

Portfolio Recovery Associates to Announce Third Quarter Results on October 27

18 October 2011

J.C. Christensen & Associates Recognized by Resurgent Capital Services for Performance Excellence

18 October 2011

Executive Change: Damon Edmondson to Flock Advisors as Chief of Analytics

17 October 2011

AUDIO: Weekly Wrap-Up Podcast - Week of October 10

15 October 2011

Bill Bartmann's Firm Announces Nationwide Expansion

14 October 2011

Lowell Group Tops European ARM Rankings for Fourth Year Running

7 October 2011

It is Time to Pay Attention to CFPB Developments and Credit Cards

6 October 2011