By Alexander Flores, Debt Buyer & Triton Financial Solutions, LLC · Level 2: Intermediate · Last updated: October 27, 2026
Most people in our industry skim the Federal Reserve’s monthly G.19 consumer credit release and move on. That is a mistake. G.19 shows how much consumer credit is outstanding and who holds it, and today’s balances are the raw material for tomorrow’s charged-off portfolios.
The latest release, issued October 7, 2026 with data through August 2026, had a twist: revolving credit, mostly credit cards, fell at a 4.2% annual rate. Below, we read it alongside the Fed’s bank charge-off data and the New York Fed’s delinquency data, and explain what it means for debt buyers and creditors heading into 2027. Every figure links to its official source, checked live on October 27, 2026.
What is the Fed G.19 consumer credit report?
G.19 is the Federal Reserve’s monthly release on consumer credit outstanding, excluding loans secured by real estate. It splits credit into revolving (mostly cards) and nonrevolving (auto, student, personal loans) and shows who holds it.
Per its footnotes, G.19 covers “most credit extended to individuals, excluding loans secured by real estate” (Federal Reserve G.19). Three parts matter most:
| G.19 section | What it shows | Why debt buyers care |
|---|---|---|
| Growth rates (seasonally adjusted) | Annualized change in revolving and nonrevolving credit | Shows whether lenders are growing or shrinking the books that future charge-offs come from |
| Holders (not seasonally adjusted) | Balances at banks, finance companies, credit unions, federal government | Tells you which seller types will have paper to sell |
| Terms of credit | Card APRs, new-car and personal loan rates | Higher rates raise balances on accounts already struggling |
G.19 does not show delinquency or charge-offs. Two other releases, covered below, fill that gap.
What did the August 2026 G.19 show?
Total consumer credit grew at a 1.9% annual rate in August 2026. Revolving credit fell at a 4.2% rate, the only negative reading in the release’s summary table, while nonrevolving credit rose at a 4.1% rate.
Here are the seasonally adjusted figures from the October 7, 2026 release:
| Measure | Q1 2026 | Q2 2026 | June 2026 | July 2026 | August 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total credit growth (annual rate) | 2.6% | 3.1% | 3.6% | 4.1% | 1.9% |
| Revolving growth (annual rate) | 4.2% | 4.9% | 6.0% | 2.5% | -4.2% |
| Nonrevolving growth (annual rate) | 2.0% | 2.4% | 2.7% | 4.7% | 4.1% |
| Total outstanding ($ billions) | 5,131.4 | 5,170.8 | 5,170.8 | 5,188.5 | 5,196.8 |
| Revolving outstanding ($ billions) | 1,338.2 | 1,354.4 | 1,354.4 | 1,357.2 | 1,352.4 |
Source: Federal Reserve G.19, released October 7, 2026. August figures are preliminary; June and July are revised.
Two cautions. August is preliminary, and monthly rates are annualized, so a $4.8 billion drop in revolving balances shows up as a large-looking -4.2%. One month is not a trend. Still, revolving growth ran faster in the first half of 2026 (4.2% in Q1, 4.9% in Q2) than in full-year 2025 (3.1%), then slowed in July and turned negative in August.
Why does revolving credit growth matter for charged-off debt supply?
Card balances charge off on a lag. Banks generally charge off open-end credit at 180 days past due, so balances that grow, then go delinquent, reach the charged-off market many months later.
The timing rule comes from the federal banking agencies’ Uniform Retail Credit Classification and Account Management Policy: “closed-end retail loans that become past due 120 cumulative days and open-end retail loans that become past due 180 cumulative days from the contractual due date should be classified loss and charged off” (Federal Reserve, Uniform Retail-Credit Classification policy).
The chain from G.19 to a portfolio sale:
| Stage | Typical timing | Where to see it |
|---|---|---|
| Credit is extended | Month 0 | Fed G.19 (balances, growth) |
| Account goes 30+ days late | Months to years later, depending on the borrower | NY Fed Household Debt and Credit Report |
| Account goes 90+ days late | Two more missed payments | NY Fed transition rates |
| Charge-off | 180 days past due for cards; 120 days for most closed-end loans | Fed charge-off and delinquency rates; issuer earnings |
| Debt sale or placement | Depends on the creditor’s strategy (spot sale, forward flow, agency first) | Seller activity, broker pipelines |
Charge-off timing from the federal policy above. Other stages are illustrative; actual timing varies by issuer and borrower.
In our experience on the desk, the useful question about G.19 is not “did credit grow?” but “how much was extended over the last 12 to 24 months, and to whom?” The strong revolving growth of early 2026 is the pool that seasons through 2027. An August slowdown, if it holds, would reach charge-off supply much later.
What do the Fed’s charge-off and delinquency rates show?
Bank credit card charge-offs were 3.82% (annualized, seasonally adjusted) in Q2 2026, flat with Q1 and down from 4.19% a year earlier. Card delinquency eased to 2.85%.
The Fed’s quarterly bank release (last updated August 25, 2026) fills the gap. Charge-offs are “measured net of recoveries as a percentage of average loans and annualized,” and delinquent loans are those 30 or more days past due or in nonaccrual status (Fed charge-off rates; Fed delinquency rates).
| Quarter | Credit card charge-off rate | Other consumer charge-off rate | Credit card delinquency rate | Other consumer delinquency rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q3 2024 | 4.69% | 1.19% | 3.20% | 2.19% |
| Q2 2025 | 4.19% | 1.20% | 3.04% | 2.38% |
| Q4 2025 | 4.09% | 1.21% | 2.95% | 2.27% |
| Q1 2026 | 3.82% | 1.17% | 2.91% | 2.28% |
| Q2 2026 | 3.82% | 1.21% | 2.85% | 2.33% |
Source: Federal Reserve, Charge-Off and Delinquency Rates on Loans and Leases at Commercial Banks, seasonally adjusted, all banks. Last update August 25, 2026.
The read for buyers: card loss rates are down from Q3 2024, but 3.82% on a revolving book that G.19 shows at $1,211.1 billion at depository institutions (not seasonally adjusted, August 2026) still means a steady stream of charged-off paper. We deliberately don’t convert that into a dollar estimate, because the two releases measure loans differently.
What does the NY Fed report say about delinquency?
In Q2 2026, 12.92% of credit card balances were 90+ days delinquent, and card balances moving into serious delinquency ran at an annualized 6.97%. Auto loans moving into serious delinquency rose to 3.00%.
The New York Fed’s Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit for Q2 2026 (released August 2026) is based on its Consumer Credit Panel, drawn from Equifax credit report data (NY Fed Household Debt and Credit Report; Q2 2026 report PDF). The headline facts:
- Total household debt was $18.77 trillion, down $13 billion from Q1.
- Credit card balances rose $21 billion (1.7%) to $1.263 trillion. Auto loan balances rose $28 billion to $1.713 trillion.
- 4.7% of outstanding debt was in some stage of delinquency, down 0.1 percentage point.
- About 137,000 consumers had a new bankruptcy notation, and 4.9% of consumers had a third-party collection account on their credit report, “largely steady,” in the report’s words.
The transition data, from the report’s data workbook, is where buyers should look hardest:
| Product (Q2 2026) | Share of balance 90+ days late | Annualized flow into 30+ days late | Annualized flow into 90+ days late |
|---|---|---|---|
| Credit card | 12.92% | 8.69% | 6.97% |
| Auto loan | 5.49% | 7.87% | 3.00% |
| Student loan | 10.60% | 7.83% | 7.83% |
| Other (retail cards, consumer finance) | 9.61% | 7.46% | 5.19% |
| All household debt | 3.31% | 4.95% | 2.57% |
Source: NY Fed Consumer Credit Panel/Equifax, HHDC 2026 Q2 data workbook, pages 12 to 14.
The report also notes the median credit score on new auto loans fell seven points in Q2 2026. Since Q1 2026 its score charts use VantageScore 4.0, so take care comparing score data across years.
Which asset classes should buyers watch?
Credit cards still supply the most volume, auto deficiency is the one with rising serious-delinquency flows, and finance company installment books are shrinking. Student loans are mostly federal and rarely reach the private debt market.
Reading G.19 holders alongside the NY Fed data gives a rough map by seller type:
| Asset class | What the data says | Supply implication for 2027 |
|---|---|---|
| Bank credit cards | Charge-offs flat at 3.82%; 90+ share of card balances near 13%; revolving balances grew strongly in H1 2026 | Steady, large supply; issuers’ sale-versus-hold choices matter more than the macro trend |
| Auto (prime and subprime) | Motor vehicle loans at $1,574.6 billion in Q2 2026 (G.19); flow into 90+ rose to 3.00%; new-loan scores weaker | Watch deficiency balances after repossession; a growing pipeline if the trend holds |
| Finance company installment | Finance company holdings fell from $713.6 billion at end-2025 to $697.3 billion in August 2026 (G.19, not seasonally adjusted) | Smaller origination base; supply depends on legacy vintages |
| Credit unions | Holdings rose to $734.1 billion in August 2026 from $721.3 billion at end-2025 | More first-time and occasional sellers; process and documentation vary widely |
Sources: Federal Reserve G.19 (October 7, 2026); NY Fed HHDC Q2 2026. Supply implications are our analysis, not Fed projections.
We cover pricing drivers by vintage and asset class in Charged-Off Debt Supply and Pricing in 2026 and What Moves Debt Portfolio Prices.
How do interest rates and jobs fit in?
Card APRs remain above 21%, which keeps balances growing on accounts that are already struggling. Unemployment was 4.2% in September 2026, so job losses are not yet the main driver of delinquency.
From G.19’s terms-of-credit table, the average APR across all credit card accounts at reporting banks was 21.19% in the August 2026 reading, and 22.36% for accounts assessed interest. The rate on a 60-month new-car loan at commercial banks was 7.54% (Federal Reserve G.19).
On the policy side, the upper bound of the Federal Open Market Committee’s target range for the federal funds rate stood at 4.00% as of October 27, 2026 (FRED, DFEDTARU). The national unemployment rate, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, was 4.2% in September 2026, compared with 4.1% in July and August (FRED, UNRATE).
High APRs mean a balance that slips behind grows quickly, raising the face value of what eventually charges off. A fairly stable job market supports liquidation on paper already charged off. A meaningful rise in unemployment would change both assumptions.
What should debt buyers do with this data?
Use G.19 to plan capital and capacity a year ahead, the Fed charge-off rates to sanity-check seller volume, and the NY Fed transition rates to judge which asset classes are worsening. Then price each file on its own tape.
Practical steps we recommend to buyers:
- Track the 12-month sum, not one month. A year of revolving and nonrevolving flows is the best public proxy for the books that will season into charge-offs.
- Watch transitions into 90+ days. Rising auto flows deserve more attention now than one negative month in revolving credit.
- Segment by holder. Credit union and finance company paper differs from big-bank card paper in documentation, media and state mix.
- Keep forward flow capacity flexible. Model volume from the issuer’s disclosures and the macro trend together. Our guide to forward flow agreements and the DebtHub spot vs forward flow explainer cover structure.
- Price the file, not the headline. Recovery depends on age, last payment, state mix, media and chain of title. See Fresh vs Aged Charged-Off Paper.
Qualified buyers can review working files under NDA through /buyers/.
What should creditors selling charged-off debt take from it?
Steady card charge-off rates and rising auto delinquency flows mean buyers will keep seeing supply. Clean files, clear chain of title and a confidential, NDA-first process are how a seller stands out.
When supply is steady, buyers get selective. Complete data tapes, account-level media and documented chain of title earn stronger bids. DebtMarket, the confidential debt brokerage desk of Triton Financial Solutions, LLC, takes files NDA-first to 200+ qualified buyers with no public auction. When a file is complete, closings typically take 1-14 days. Creditors can start at /sellers/, and our DebtHub collects our explainers for sellers and buyers. We are a marketplace and broker, not a collection agency. If you are new to the terms, start with What Is a Charge-Off?.
When is the next G.19 release?
The Fed says G.19 is generally issued on the fifth business day of each month. Check the release dates page for the exact date, and the NY Fed site for the Q3 2026 Household Debt and Credit Report.
Data not yet published, such as Q3 2026 bank charge-off rates, is not estimated here.
Key takeaways
- G.19 measures consumer credit outstanding, not delinquency. It is a leading indicator of the books that later charge off.
- August 2026 revolving credit fell at a 4.2% annual rate after strong first-half growth. One preliminary month is not a trend.
- Bank card charge-offs held at 3.82% in Q2 2026, down from 4.19% a year earlier; card delinquency eased to 2.85%.
- NY Fed data shows 12.92% of card balances 90+ days late and auto flows into serious delinquency rising to 3.00%.
- Use the three releases together, then price each portfolio on its own tape.
Related reading on DebtMarket
Sources (each checked live on October 27, 2026)
- Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Consumer Credit – G.19, August 2026, released October 7, 2026.
- Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Charge-Off Rates on Loans and Leases at Commercial Banks, seasonally adjusted, last updated August 25, 2026.
- Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Delinquency Rates on Loans and Leases at Commercial Banks, seasonally adjusted, last updated August 25, 2026.
- Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Quarterly Report on Household Debt and Credit, 2026 Q2, released August 2026, and the accompanying data workbook on the Household Debt and Credit Report page.
- Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Uniform Retail-Credit Classification and Account-Management Policy.
- Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, FRED, Unemployment Rate (UNRATE), source U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, September 2026 observation.
- Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, FRED, Federal Funds Target Range, Upper Limit (DFEDTARU), October 27, 2026 observation.
This article is general market information for industry professionals. It is not investment, legal or accounting advice.