This is an accepted version of this page William Allan Jones Jr. (born December 31, 1952) is an American businessman from Cleveland, Tennessee.

[7] Jones attended Cleveland High School, where he wrestled and won various awards and served as team captain.

[8] Jones left college at age 20 to help his father stabilize the family's small business, the Credit Bureau of Cleveland.

[9] He purchased the business from his father in 1977 and developed it to become the largest privately owned credit bureau databases in the state, covering 63 counties.

[10] Jones sold the credit reporting side of the business to Equifax in 1988, although he retained the name and the company's collection agency division.

[11] The sale to Equifax set a record for the highest price per earnings paid for a credit reporting business.

[14] Jones said he founded CFSA after breaking away from the National Check Cashers Association, due to concerns that the NCCA, now called Financial Service Centers of America, was not giving enough attention to the payday lending industry.

The company, known for its "Sewn in the South" slogan and renowned during the 1960s for making the world's best blazer, was facing bankruptcy when Jones acquired it.

"[16] Within weeks of purchasing Hardwick Clothes, Jones named Bruce Bellusci, former executive vice president at Hart Schafner & Marx, the company's new CEO/president.

[20] Jones is the largest property owner in Bradley County and has renovated many buildings, including a former shopping mall that he altered to become a site for his companies.

[32] In 2017, Jones received national attention when he auctioned off a 2009 King Ranch F-150 four-wheel drive pickup truck autographed twice by President George W. Bush.

[36] In 2014, the Jones family gave a donation to Lee University to purchase the old First Baptist Church building in downtown Cleveland and renovate it into a music performance hall.

[38] Jones is credited with the creation of the legend of Tall Betsy, a Halloween cultural icon based in Bradley County.

[39] Jones' company Check Into Cash has received criticism for its high interest rates and for harming its customers.

"[43] Jones denied ever making the statements to numerous media outlets and claimed he was misquoted, stating "I gave generously of my time...to assist in the preparation for writing a book, purported to fairly represent the credit needs of the middle income working population and the markets that serve them.

"[43] In the early 2010s, Jones colluded with the local Chamber of Commerce, whose building he owns, to convince the city of Cleveland and Bradley County to jointly purchase one of his properties for an industrial park.

[44][45] Jones had struggled to sell this property for many years, and reportedly suggested this tract to the Chamber of Commerce when he learned they were interested in a new publicly owned industrial park.

[44][45] This project was widely criticized as a boondoggle and bad investment, as well as corporate welfare, and reportedly cost the local taxpayers tens of millions of dollars.

[48][49] Jones was indicted on federal charges of wiretapping in 1975 after he placed a recording device on the telephone at his home located at 320 Bowman Avenue NW in October 1974.

[52] Jones then began lobbying the legislatures in multiple states to change laws which place caps on interest, which led to the passage of multiple acts including the Tennessee Deferred Presentment Services Act by the Tennessee General Assembly, which permits payday lending with some restrictions.

[23] It consists of a more than $5 million house constructed between 2003 and 2009, as well as a football field, horse stables, a greenhouse and a classic car collection.

[55] Politically, Jones has been an Independent, and has donated to the campaigns of both Democratic and Republican politicians, but his views are characterized to be right-leaning and fiscally conservative.