Cincinnati (AP) -- The payday loan industry is searching for other ways to do business in Ohio as consumer advocates worry that lenders are finding a way around recent election results.
The industry lost a ballot fight last week to overturn tough restrictions on the interest rates it can charge costumers.
Lenders are focusing more on services like pawn brokering and gold buying, and some are applying for licenses under other Ohio loan laws.
Since May, six months before election day, the state has received 568 applications from payday lenders seeking to provide loans under the Ohio Mortgage Loan Act, which governs loans secured by real estate or other personal property.
The maximum rate is 25 percent with no loan amount limit.
