Key Facts

• Credit card debt rose by $22 billion in the third quarter of 2026 and was $52 billion higher than a year earlier, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
• The average rate charged on credit card accounts assessed interest was 22.36 percent, according to Federal Reserve data.
• The share of balances newly entering serious delinquency, defined as at least 90 days late, was 6.87 percent in the third quarter, down from 7.05 percent a year earlier.
• President Donald Trump called for a 10 percent credit card interest cap to start January 20, but that date passed without the cap taking effect.
• Senator Elizabeth Warren said she was willing to work with Trump on a 10 percent limit and cited legislation she introduced that would let states enforce rate caps on credit cards and other consumer loans.
• A finance professor estimated that a household with an $8,000 balance would pay about $800 in annual interest at 10 percent, compared with roughly $1,800 at current rates.
• The article says lenders could respond to a cap by raising fees, reducing rewards or credit limits, tightening approval standards, or limiting credit to borrowers with lower credit scores.