Underbanked

Lansing, Mich., is working with area banks to open accounts for people coming out of prison.

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.