ASIC has reported on the progress - or lack thereof - towards changes promised by lenders to allow their customers to cope more effectively with credit card debt. This latest analysis of credit card lending in Australia (Report 604) follows an in initial review of credit card lending in Australia by ASIC, published in July (Report 580), which found an unacceptably high number of borrowers - estimated as one in six - from among the ten largest lenders' customer bases were struggling with debt. The lenders involved in the two reviews were American Express, ANZ, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, Citigroup, CBA, HSBC, Latitude, Macquarie, NAB and Westpac."Consumers carrying balances over time on high-interest rate cards could have saved more than A$621 million in interest in 2016-17 if they had carried their balance on a card with a lower interest rate," the July 2018 report noted.Following this first review, ASIC set out a range of expectations for lenders which - in the absence of legal authority to enforce change - can be summarised as nudges to:•    take proactive steps to address problematic credit card debt and products that do not suit consumers;•    minimise the extra credit provided to consumers who regularly exceed their credit limit;•    allocate repayments for all credit cards in the more favourable way required for cards entered into after July 2012; and•    restrict the amount by which consumers can exceed their credit limit to 10 per cent.The changes sought are not required by law, ASIC conceded, although it said "they are important in ensuring that the credit card market works for consumers, including vulnerable consumers". In its second report, the regulator applauded "some credit providers" for trialling measures - such as tailored communications or structured payment arrangements - to help consumers with potentially problematic credit card debt or who are failing to repay balance transfers."Macquarie, CBA and HSBC are the most progressed with implementing changes around credit card lending," ASIC said.ASIC also reported the varying approaches to balance transfers, such as allowing interest-free periods on new purchases.ANZ, CBA, HSBC and Macquarie have promised to allow consumers who transfer a balance to have an interest-free period for new purchases. Bendigo and Adelaide Bank does not offer balance transfers with a promotional rate; and Latitude has indicated that it will no longer accept balance transfers.American Express and Westpac "are considering this issue", while Citi has promised "to more clearly disclose that interest-free periods will not be available" for balance transfers."ASIC expects that all credit card lenders will address the issues raised in our review," said ASIC commissioner, Sean Hughes."We will be monitoring lenders over the next two years to make sure they have taken action to address our concerns, and to ensure that consumer outcomes are improving in the credit card market."ASIC has prescribed a three-year period for credit card responsible lending assessments. This means that credit providers must not provide a credit card with a limit that the consumer could not repay within three years. This change will take