California Association of Collectors

What California Association of Collectors does

California Association of Collectors, Inc. is a nonprofit trade association founded in 1917 that serves California's credit and collection industry. Its primary constituency is third-party collection agencies operating in California, with additional participation from attorneys, vendor companies, associate members, creditors, and asset buyers. CAC is the founding unit of ACA International and operates as its California state affiliate; general members must also hold ACA International membership.

CAC's core offering is a membership-based package of California legislative advocacy, legal and regulatory information, education, conferences, regional meetings, Annual Legislative Day, networking, and a quarterly electronic Collector's Ink magazine. It also operates a Consumer 800 Hotline and is affiliated with the CAC Educational Scholarship Foundation, a 501(c)(3) founded in 2005 that awards scholarships to California high school students. The association is not described as a technology company: no API, SDK, AI modality, or proprietary software capability is disclosed, and its technology consists of conventional service-delivery channels such as its website, member directories, publications, and events.

Revenue is supported primarily by annual membership dues from general, associate, vendor, and Member Attorney Program participants. Vendor sponsorship and advertising opportunities, PAC donations, and tax-deductible donations to the scholarship foundation are additional funding mechanisms; membership pricing and financial results are not publicly disclosed. CACESF is the only disclosed affiliated entity, and the stated operating footprint is California (Primary source:).

Name

California Association of Collectors

Legal name

California Association of Collectors, Inc.

Website

https://calcollectors.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1917

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

California Association of Collectors is a nonprofit trade association serving California credit and collection professionals through advocacy, legal resources, education, networking, publications, and member services for agencies, attorneys, vendors, and affiliates. (Primary source:.)

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trade Association Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Collection Agencies (561440)

SIC

Services-Consumer Credit Reporting, Collection Agencies (7320)

akta.pro primary industry

Third-Party Debt Collection Agencies (Consumer & Commercial) (BPAAAEAB)

Keywords

• Trade association membership
• Debt collection advocacy
• Credit collection industry
• Professional industry association
• Collection agency services

Headquarters

HQ city

Sacramento

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: CAC generates revenue through annual membership dues from General Members (third-party collection agencies), Associate Members, Vendor Members, and Member Attorney Program participants. Members receive access to legislative advocacy, legal information, education, networking events, and the Collector's Ink magazine.
2. Educational Scholarship Foundation Donations: The CAC Educational Scholarship Foundation (CACESF), a 501(c)(3) charitable corporation founded in 2005, accepts tax-deductible donations. The foundation awards scholarships to California high school students.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The California Association of Collectors (CAC) is a nonprofit professional trade association serving California's credit and collection industry. Founded in 1917 and headquartered in Savage, Minnesota, CAC offers tiered memberships (General, Associate, Vendor, and Member Attorney Program) along with legislative advocacy in Sacramento, quarterly industry publications (Collector's Ink), educational seminars, an Annual Legislative Day, regional meetings, an annual conference, consumer complaint resolution via a 800 Hotline, and an Educational Scholarship Foundation (501(c)(3)) supporting California students.

Product overview

The California Association of Collectors is a professional trade association, not a software product company. It offers a unified membership platform providing access to general membership, associate membership, vendor membership, and the Member Attorney Program (MAP). The association's product portfolio centers on membership services, publications (Collector's Ink magazine), consumer complaint resolution (Consumer 800 Hotline), and an educational scholarship foundation. These offerings are service-based programs supporting the credit and collection industry in California rather than a technology platform or software product.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• General Membership
• Associate Membership
• Vendor Membership
• Member Attorney Program (MAP)
• Collector's Ink Magazine
• Consumer 800 Hotline
• CAC Educational Scholarship Foundation

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• ACA InternationalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1939ACA International is CAC's national affiliate organization. CAC is the state affiliate (unit) association and the founding unit of ACA International, which was founded in 1939 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. All CAC members must also hold membership with ACA International. This dual-affiliation creates a comprehensive national and state-level representation structure for the credit and collection industry.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• DBA International (Debt Buyers Association): National trade association for the debt-buying industry. Closely comparable as a specialized industry association serving collection-adjacent professionals, with overlapping membership bases (creditors, asset buyers).
• ACA International: National trade association for the credit and collection industry and CAC's national affiliate since 1939. Directly comparable in mission, member services, advocacy, and publications, but operating at the national level.
• Receivables Management Association International (RMA): International association for the receivables management industry. Directly comparable as an industry body serving collection professionals with advocacy, education, and certification offerings.
• Commercial Collection Agencies Association (CCAA): Association of commercial collection agencies, law firms, and collection-industry vendors. Directly comparable membership model and advocacy scope, with a narrower commercial-collectors focus.

Regional players

• Texas Collectors Association: Another ACA International state-affiliate association for Texas collectors. Comparable structure and member services to CAC, but serving a different state — making it a regional rather than direct competitor.
• American Collectors Association of Illinois: State-level collection-industry trade association. Directly comparable in model (state affiliate of ACA International) but operating in Illinois rather than California, so a regional peer rather than direct overlap.

Broad incumbents

• International Association of Commercial Administrators (IACA): Association of state and international commercial-law administrators and collection regulators. Comparable as a niche industry association serving the collections ecosystem, with a regulatory/officer focus rather than agency focus.
• National Association of Credit Management (NACM): Long-established national trade association serving business credit and receivables management professionals. Overlaps with CAC's mission of supporting credit and collection workflows, but broader in scope (B2B credit, trade credit).
• American Financial Services Association (AFSA): National trade association for consumer finance and lending institutions. Comparable as a US financial-services industry association, but covering lenders and installment credit rather than third-party collections specifically.

Others

• InsideARM: Industry media and information provider serving the receivables management and debt collection ecosystem. Not a peer association, but a complementary/adjacent information intermediary that competes for industry mindshare and event attention.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about California Association of Collectors