Families Continue to Struggle Under Record-High Credit Card Rates As Cost-of-Living Soars

January 21, 2026 | WASHINGTON, D.C. — After weeks of public pressure over record credit card interest rates and soaring household costs, President Trump announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, that he is “asking Congress to cap credit card interest rates at 10 percent for one year.” While this reflects what borrowers have demanded for years, it comes after a full year of the Trump Administration siding with Wall Street and making credit card debt more expensive, not less.

In response, Protect Borrowers Executive Director Mike Pierce released the following statement:

“Families across the country have turned to high-rate credit card debt to stay afloat, amid America’s spiraling affordability crisis. Banks are charging the highest rates ever recorded—raking in windfall profits because both American life and Americans’ debts are more expensive. If the President is serious about helping families, he needs his Republican allies in Congress to make this a top priority and stand up to the executives and lobbyists trying to protect banks’ bottom lines.”

Last week, House Speaker Mike Johnson, who would need to advance any new legislation, voiced skepticism about the President’s plan to cap credit card rates, claiming that President Trump had “probably not thought through” his proposal to provide relief to American families across the country.

Yesterday, Protect Borrowers published a new analysis showing that credit card delinquencies are the highest they have been since 2011 and are disproportionately the highest in states that Trump won during the 2024 election. Delinquency rates are 4.7 percentage points higher in the states that Trump won than in those he lost, by average outstanding balance, as of the second quarter of 2025.

This renewed push for a legislative cap on credit card rates runs contrary to recent statements by top Trump Administration economic policymakers. For example, on January 16, White House economic advisor Kevin Hassett proposed a plan that would be a boon for banks, but bad for borrowers—instead of a rate cap, banks could “voluntarily” offer “really great new Trump Cards.” 

As the Protect Borrowers team wrote, these credit cards “with a 10 percent rate that, presumably, could be underwritten and priced based on Americans’ creditworthiness. This pivot to a voluntary “Trump Card” is a credit card banker’s dream come true—no need to deliver relief to people who struggle and no government mandate to tamp down runaway bank profits.”

Further Reading

Protect Borrowers blog/substack on Trump credit cards and delinquency rates: Trump Credit Cards? Another Bank Handout, Just in Time for TACO Tuesday (Trump Always Chickens Out)

Protect Borrowers blog on credit card bank profits amidst the affordability crisis: Trump’s Wall Street Watchdog Confirms Working People Got Slammed By Credit Card Interest and Fees

Protect Borrowers blog/substack by Brian Shearer of Vanderbilt Policy Accelerator on why interest rate caps are effective: Take-Down of the Take-Down: The Bankers are Wrong About Interest Rate Caps

Protect Borrowers blog on the popularity of government action to cap credit card interest rates: What’s the deal with credit card debt?

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About Protect Borrowers

Protect Borrowers (formerly Student Borrower Protection Center) is a nonprofit organization led by a team of experts, lawyers, and advocates fighting to build an economy where debt doesn’t limit opportunity. We investigate financial abuses, take predatory companies to court, and push for policies to protect working people from debt traps. We aim to deliver immediate relief to families while building power, driving systemic change, and fighting for racial and economic justice.

Learn more at protectborrowers.org or follow us on social @BorrowerJustice.