Oportun opens first retail locations in New Mexico, provides responsible and affordable loans to residents with little or no credit history

Local community leaders support Oportun’s responsible approach to lending

REDWOOD CITY, CA – January 11, 2018 – Oportun, a certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) with a mission of providing personal loans that help people with little or no credit history establish credit and build a better future, today announced the opening of its first retail locations in New Mexico. Residents of New Mexico have been able to apply for Oportun loans online since May 2017.

Oportun uses advanced data analytics and technology to lend money to individuals who other lenders consider ‘unscoreable,’ and has already helped nearly half a million people establish a credit score for the first time. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) estimates that there are 45 million people in the United States whose lack of a credit score translates into limited options if they need money for an emergency or larger expense.

Oportun customers have saved more than $1 billion dollars by choosing Oportun loans instead of one of the other alternatives widely available to individuals with limited credit history, according to research conducted on Oportun’s behalf by the Center for Financial Services Innovation (CFSI), a leading authority on consumer financial health. Those alternatives — which include payday, pawn loans and others — are four times more expensive on average but can be up to seven times more expensive.

“We are excited to welcome residents of New Mexico to our first retail locations in the state,” said Oportun CEO Raul Vazquez. “We hope our affordable and responsible loans can help them move forward with their lives, whether they visit one of our locations for in-person service, call us on the phone, or use their mobile phones to apply for a loan online.”

Local community leaders support Oportun’s responsible approach to lending.  “New Mexico residents have a great alternative in Oportun, whether they need to borrow money for an emergency or want to start establishing the credit history they need to build a better future,” said Ona Porter, CEO Prosperity Works and Co-Chair of the New Mexico Fair Lending Coalition.

Since its founding in 2005, Oportun has served more than 1.1 million customers and disbursed more than $4.6 billion in affordable, small dollar loans by using its proprietary risk engine to ‘score the unscoreable.’

ABOUT OPORTUN

Oportun is a mission-driven financial services company that uses advanced data analytics and technology to provide responsible, affordable personal loans to people with little or no credit history so they can establish credit. The company’s centralized system calculates each loan applicant’s ability to repay, approves those loans the company believes can be paid back, and sets loan amounts and terms to fit customer budgets. Customer account information is reported to two nationwide credit bureaus to help customers establish credit history.

Oportun operates 264 retail locations and delivers bilingual (English/Spanish) customer service via retail locations, contact centers, and mobile to customers in Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, and Utah.

In recognition of Oportun’s goals of increasing economic opportunity for its clients, promoting community development, and serving low-income or underserved communities, Oportun is certified by the United States Department of Treasury as a Community Development Financial Institution or CDFI.