bleed their customers dry to make up the shortfall. Layoffs and rate hikes. The winning Trump economy!

to "better serve their customers........."

The squeeze is on.

...defaults and bankruptcies in the next crash/recession.

And what of the banks, and the difference between what they pay to depositors and what they charge borrowers?

I worked in the industry years ago. One of two things probably happened:

1) The primary state in which they operate raised the max rate on 1/1 so they raised theirs to match.

2) They changed their primary state of operation through a merger, acquisition, etc., and the max rate available in the new state is higher.

Another option is that they just raised it because their profits didn't meet expectations. On second thought, that might be the most likely.

Soon everyone will be getting the offers to consolidate all your credit card debts for a limited time 9% rate.

When they figure they’ve squeezed as much as they can out of their customers they’ll start freezing their accounts, not allowing any more purchases but demanding payments as they hike the interest rates and tack on a few extra charges for ‘managing’ the credit cards. By that time people will be going into foreclosure massively.

Then the government will bail them out cause they’re too big to fail.

Sign of things to come
Pay off your cards no matter what it takes
And don't buy what you can't pay for now

Current balances have to be protected at the old rate (unless it's a penalty rate being assessed due to delinquency). And you can opt out of the change and have your account closed. But if it's an old account it might be in the best interest of your credit score to keep it open and just don't use it or if you do use it, pay it off in full.

Obtain discounts or reward points to use on merchandise. I pay them off using the number on the receipt, frequently before the statement cycles.