Underbanked

The $1.5 million investment will help Grameen America make more small-dollar loans in the Midwest.

The eight winners of an annual fintech competition will receive $250,000 in capital and resources.

The city has spent more than a decade working with nonprofits and banks to encourage people to open deposit accounts. Outreach and special products have lowered the unbanked rate in San Francisco to 2.1% in 2015 from 5.9% in 2011.

Readers weigh in on the in-store branch model, how community banks hone their message, the difficulty cash-strapped consumers face in finding bank loans, and more.

The nonprofit Bank On certifies banks that offer deposit accounts with minimal fees. It is one of many initiatives designed to bring more consumers into mainstream banking.

Banks have not adjusted their business models to accommodate growing numbers of financially precarious Americans. But hard times should not disqualify people from the banking system.

A Nebraska banking veteran put up $1 million of her own money to create a microlending program that doesn't require business owners to provide traditional collateral.

A total of $2 million in grant funding will be available through the regulator's Office of Small Credit Union Initiatives.

Fintech still has a ways to go to change the financial world, but it already offers solutions to income insecurity that can be truly transformational right now.

The service for purchasing digital content and paying through a phone bill to more than 79 million mobile phone owners in Algeria, Ghana and Tanzania.

The Pasadena, Calif., firm also reported growth in the number of active prepaid cards for the first time since the second quarter of 2015. Profits rose by 24%.

The acquirer of the failed Guaranty Bank took a pass on the latter’s 107 in-store branches, leading to their shutdown and a disruption in service for many low-income customers.

Despite a categorical denial this week by Wells Fargo CEO Tim Sloan, former employees like Yesenia Guitron say trawling for immigrants was routine.

At a minimum, federal lawmakers should fully fund the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund and support the CDFIs that provide economic opportunity where it is needed most.

Big data is a key for banks to better understand what financial products underbanked consumers and small businesses need.

Kosta Peric, deputy director of digital payments and financial services for the poor at the Gates Foundation, discusses his efforts to expand access to low-cost financial services in developing countries.

We asked microfinance organizations around the country about the challenges they face, what they wish banks would do differently, and even what they are reading. Here are some of their responses.

The marketplace for services to help struggling families balance their short-term and long-term financial needs is improving, but is still insufficient.

Income volatility is a persistent problem for millions of U.S. households. Banks and fintech companies are trying to help consumers cope — but the industry can do more.

Digit's decision to charge a monthly fee for its savings help speaks to the challenge of making fintech profitable.