SANTA ROSA, Calif.–Union Credit, which describes itself as the “first marketplace for credit unions to deliver perpetual credit approval and one-click loan activation to new member prospects,” is launching with $5 million in seed funding led by CUNA Mutual’s venture capital fund, CMFG Ventures.
Other funding is coming from Marin Sonoma Impact Ventures(MSIV), Array and other “strategic fintech influencers.”
Union Credit said its solution allows CUs to make firm offers of credit embedded into the front end of purchase and financing experiences.
The company reported it will use the investment to focus on building out its digital lending marketplace, SDK, and a direct-to-consumer app where consumers can manage perpetual offers of credit from local lenders that want to serve them.
Partnership With CuneXus
Union Credit said it has partnered with CuneXus, a wholly-owned technology subsidiary of CUNA Mutual Group that is currently producing more than $27 billion in loans annually.
“CuneXus co-founder Dave Buerger is launching his new company with colleague Barry Kirby to leverage this partnership and offer an embedded digital storefront model outside the credit union’s digital walls and into the open market,” the company said.
Union Credit added it will be the exclusive partner of CuneXus to offer this marketplace and initially will focus on the nearly 250 credit unions already leveraging CuneXus.
‘Ending Guesswork’
“Ending the guesswork of lending and financing is an important step towards financial health,” said Brian Kaas, president and managing director at CMFG Ventures. “Union Credit can create real transparency via perpetual credit access. It’s a model that has the potential to completely change the way credit unions grow, allowing them to compete with fintechs and large financial institutions in their communities during the purchase experience. The company fits well into our portfolio and brings a bright perspective to the future of the credit union movement.”
New Members
Union Credit said it provides credit unions with new, credit-worthy members from outside their ecosystem by aggregating consumer data, and matching it with credit union field of membership, product, decisioning and underwriting details.
According to the company, for the 250 credit unions already using the CuneXus platform, these lenders will have the ability to easily opt-in to Union Credit’s marketplace, via an existing integration with CuneXus. Once the match is made, the consumer is in charge of the relationship and their data. If they choose to move forward with an offer, it only takes one-click to engage, the company added.
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