Auto Finance Outstandings Top Record $900 Billion
Bolstered by record originations, the auto finance industry closed out a banner year in 2014, with $907.1 billion in loan and lease outstandings, according to new data released today.
Loan and lease outstandings last year among the top 100 financiers in the nation grew 10.4%, a slowdown from the 14% increase recorded in 2013, but still a strong growth rate, according to the annual Big Wheels Auto Finance ranking of car lenders and lessors.
“The nation’s top 100 auto financiers notched their fifth straight year of expansion in 2014, with record volume of auto loans and leases outstanding,” said Marcie Belles, Vice President of Auto Finance at Royal Media, which publishes the report in conjunction with Auto Finance News, the industry’s newsletter of record. “Outstandings above the $900-billion mark clearly distinguish auto finance as one of the nation’s most important consumer credit sectors.”
Loan and lease originations among the 100 largest U.S. financiers grew 10.5% last year, to $494.4 billion, compared with $447.4 billion of originations in 2013.
The increase in financing activity came amid higher vehicle sales, and despite heightened regulatory enforcement by the federal government. New-car sales climbed 5.8% to 16.5 million units in 2014, while used-car sales were flat at 42 million units. Demand has been driven, in part, by an aging vehicle fleet.
Among the top players, Ally Financial retained its spot atop the ranking, ending the year with an $81.3 billion portfolio and $41.0 billion of originations. Toyota Financial Services claimed the No. 2 spot with a $79.0 billion portfolio and $41.6 billion of originations.
New to the Big Wheels report this year is a ranking of auto finance companies by prime and subprime outstandings. Toyota Financial was No. 1 among prime lenders, while Ally took the top spot in the subprime ranking. For the purposes of this analysis, both nonprime and subprime loans are referred to as “subprime.”
“Growth in the auto finance industry has been slowing in recent years, but the outlook is still strong,” said Belles, the report’s author. “Even with a tough regulatory environment and competitive landscape, loan and lease outstandings are closing in on $1 trillion.”
The top five auto finance companies in the U.S. overall in 2014:
- Ally Financial Inc.
- Toyota Financial Services
- American Honda Finance Corp
- Wells Fargo Dealer Services Inc.
- Chase Auto Finance
ABOUT BIG WHEELS AUTO FINANCE DATA
The Big Wheels Auto Finance (http://www.bigwheelsdata.com) data report is the nation’s only tabulation of auto lending and leasing. The report, published annually since 1999, uses a wide range of public, private and proprietary data to formulate its ranking of the Top 100 auto finance companies, and includes an Excel spreadsheet of rankings data. New for 2015, the report includes a breakdown of prime-vs.-subprime loans within each of the top 25 lenders’ portfolios, along with average credit scores and the percent of applications funded for prime and subprime.
To order Big Wheels, please visit http://www.bigwheelsdata.com. Members of the media can receive commentary on the data by contacting Marcie Belles at 212-991-6733 or mdbelles@royalmedia.com.
