CAC former CEO Ken Booth says tech, disciplined approach are key

In Ken Booth ’s more than 20 years at Credit Acceptance Corp. , he has focused on technology enhancements, portfolio growth, and improving customer and dealer journeys. [caption id="attachment_58357289" align="alignleft" width="91"] Ken Booth[/caption] Booth served as chief executive and president at Credit Acceptance from May 2021 until former T-Mobile Chief Marketing Officer Vinayak R. Hegde took over as CEO in November . Booth is serving as an executive board member for CAC until Jan. 31, when he plans to retire. He will remain a member of the board after his retirement. Prior to becoming CEO, Booth was chief financial officer at the Southfield, Mich.-based lender for more than 17 years. During his decades with CAC, Booth focused on the culture of the company and supporting its customers, dealers and employees, he told Auto Finance News . “One of the most pivotal moments in my career was the transition from a technical finance role into broader leadership,” he said. “During my first year as director of internal audit/chief accounting officer, I was focused on accounting and compliance, but stepping into executive leadership gave me a front-row seat to how our decisions directly impact people’s lives,” he said. "S tepping into executive leadership gave me a front-row seat to how our decisions directly impact people’s lives." -- Ken Booth, CAC Hegde picks up where Booth leaves off just as the subprime lending market faces affordability challenges and increased scrutiny . CAC’s number of consumer loan assignments, or originations, decreased 16.5% year over year to 79,916 units and were down 19.4% on a dollar basis in the third quarter. The adjusted portfolio rose 2.1% YoY to $9.1 billion. The financier was the 30th-largest auto lender by outstandings at yearend 2024, according to the latest Big Wheels Rankings data . AFN spoke with Booth about CAC’s leadership transition, his time at the financier and his thoughts on the industry and how the lender is preparing for the future. What follows is an edited version of the conversation. Auto Finance News : What are the most significant opportunities and challenges facing the auto finance industry and CAC? Ken Booth : The auto finance industry is at a pivotal moment. On one hand, we’re seeing exciting opportunities driven by digital transformation, geographic expansion and the power of AI. On the other, we’re navigating real challenges — rising consumer costs and volatility in the market. For Credit Acceptance, the opportunities are significant. We are improving dealer experiences by enhancing how we work with major platforms like RouteOne and DealerTrack and enhancing our flagship product, CAPS, for all dealers. We’re also providing new tools to help independent dealers grow their business. [CAPS is CAC’s proprietary Credit Approval Processing System.] At the same time, we’re realistic about the challenges. Our industry naturally faces a high level of competition and consumer challenges based on the economic environment. What gives me confidence is that we’ve been through many cycles before, and we are equipped to weather this one, too. AFN : The auto finance landscape has seen tremendous change in recent years, especially post-pandemic. How is Credit Acceptance positioning itself to stay ahead and what are some of the largest shifts to come? KB : The post-pandemic auto finance environment has been defined by volatility — rising interest rates , cost-of-living pressures and intense competition, particularly in the subprime space. At Credit Acceptance, we’ve taken a long-term, disciplined approach to navigating these shifts. In Q3, we saw a decline in originations and collections, largely due to underperforming loan vintages from 2022 to 2024 and a more conservative scorecard we introduced in 2024. While these headwinds are real, they’re also temporary. Our loan portfolio remains at a record high of $9 billion. That tells me our fundamentals are strong. To stay ahead, we’ve prioritized modernizing our technology systems. We’ve made significant investments in our origination platform, increasing the speed of enhancements by more than half. These upgrades allow us to respond to market shifts and support our dealers with smarter tools, such as our credit application, which allows dealers to acquire consumers across multiple channels. Over the past few years, we’ve expanded our capital through eight senior note offerings and growing our revolving credit facilities to $1.7 billion. That financial flexibility allows us to weather short-term volatility while continuing to serve our mission. Looking ahead, the biggest shifts will be in how lenders use technology to meet dealer and consumer needs, how we meet those needs in a high-cost environment and how we continue to include consumers who are often excluded from traditional financing. AFN : How are you preparing CAC’s new CEO for the evolution that will be needed to drive continued success amid challenging market dynamics? KB : We’ve been through many credit cycles over the years and, while each one has its own characteristics, this one doesn’t feel particularly different. What matters most is how you prepare for it and lead through it. At Credit Acceptance, we’ve built a business model that’s designed to be resilient. We’re not chasing short-term volume; we’re focused on long-term value and responsible lending. We’re seeing some lenders exit the space or pause originations , especially in the wake of high-profile bankruptcies like Tricolor . That’s unfortunate, but not surprising. When companies take on too much risk or grow too fast without experience and capabilities, they become vulnerable. We’ve remained disciplined, even when it meant pulling back on originations. As I hand the CEO role over to Vinayak, I’ve been focused on ensuring continuity in our strategy and culture. Vinayak has been a strategic partner on our board for years, and he brings deep experience in technology, product, marketing and customer-focused innovation at successful founder-led companies. We’ve spent time together on the fundamentals that make Credit Acceptance unique. I’m confident that he, along with the management team, will build on that foundation while bringing fresh perspectives to help us evolve. One of the most important lessons I’m sharing with Vinayak is that while the tools and tactics may evolve, especially with the rise of AI and digital transformation , our purpose and business model must remain grounded in who we are. Our business model is resilient because it’s built on responsible lending, strong risk management and a deep understanding of our customers. AFN : Since stepping into the CEO role in 2021, what have been your top priorities for CAC’s growth and direction? When I became CEO in 2021, my top priority was to ensure that Credit Acceptance stayed true to its mission of making vehicle ownership possible by providing financing that enables dealers to sell vehicles to any consumer, regardless of their credit history and who are often overlooked by traditional lenders. Over the past few years, I’ve focused on three key areas: Becoming more dealer-obsessed; Enhancing our technology and product capabilities; and Fostering a culture that empowers our team to serve with empathy and excellence. We’ve expanded our loan portfolio to record levels, modernized our originations platform and invested in tools that help dealers succeed. Perhaps most importantly, we’ve worked hard to build a culture that supports the regular person, whether that’s a team member, a dealer or a customer. AFN : How have technology and analytics transformed auto finance and how CAC does business, and do you foresee further evolution? Technology and data analytics have fundamentally reshaped how we operate — not just at Credit Acceptance, but across the entire auto finance industry. What hasn’t changed is our approach: we start by asking what our dealers and consumers need, and then we look at every available technology to help us deliver against our mission. On the consumer side, we’ve developed new digital experiences in servicing that make it easier and faster for customers to manage their accounts. We launched a new digital payments experience — most consumers who use it complete a payment in under 60 seconds. On the dealer side, we’ve invested in modernizing our systems using the latest technologies, allowing us to move at a much faster speed to launch new products. Looking ahead, we see further evolution. While our mission won’t change, we will continue to transform how we do business. AFN : How do you foresee Hegde’s experience contributing to CAC’s growth in the coming years? Vinayak will be an accelerant for Credit Acceptance. He brings a rare combination of deep experience in technology, marketing, engineering and product leadership — skills that are essential as we continue to modernize and scale our business. He can lead digital transformation, drive customer-centric innovation and build high-performing teams across complex, fast-moving industries. He understands our business model, our culture and our mission. That continuity, combined with his fresh perspective, is exactly what we need to take our next big leap forward.

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