Core Innovation Capital, the investment partner of the Center for Financial Services Innovation (CFSI) today announced that it has closed a strategic investment in Progreso Financiero, a pioneering and socially-minded financial services company based in Silicon Valley. These funds will be used to accelerate Progreso's growth and help the company scale its operations to become the leading provider of responsible financial products for underserved Hispanics in the United States.

Progreso is dedicated to the economic advancement of Hispanic families. Since its founding in 2005, the company has helped hundreds of thousands of underserved Hispanics access credit and build wealth. Using a proprietary risk scoring model that determines a customer's true capacity to afford a loan, Progreso is empowering Hispanics to join the financial mainstream. To better serve its customers, Progreso has established a significant retail footprint throughout California and Texas, states that represent nearly half of the entire U.S. Hispanic population.

"We are excited to welcome Core Innovation Capital as a partner that shares our vision to empower underserved customers in the U.S. through greater financial stability," said Raul Vazquez, CEO of Progreso Financiero. "This investment will help us expand Progreso's reach and ability to provide responsible financial products for all of America's growing underserved Hispanic population."

"There are few companies to point toward who provide credit products that are both safe, affordable and high quality for borrowers and demonstrate the ability to scale aggressively," said Arjan Schütte, founder and a managing partner at Core Innovation Capital. "We believe that Progreso's leadership can do what many doubt is possible: create economic empowerment for its customers and great value for its investors."

CFSI, which launched Core in 2010, leads the industry in championing high quality, profitable and responsible financial services for underserved consumers in the US. "Progreso has long set an example with a holistic risk model, a no-rollover loan structure, credit bureau reporting and an ability to scale," said Rachel Schneider, VP of Insights & Analytics at CFSI. "We're excited about their tremendous progress to date and encourage their efforts to expand delivery of high quality, small dollar credit products to the marketplace."

About Progreso Financiero

Progreso Financiero aims to be the partner of choice to the 23 million underbanked Hispanics in the United States who need access to responsible and empowering financial products and services. Unlike mainstream institutions, Progreso provides loans without collateral to clients who lack credit history by using its sophisticated risk-scoring system that emphasizes a client's true capacity to afford a loan. Progreso Financiero engages with customers in their neighborhoods, in their language, and with familiar faces from the community to build relationships of trust that lead to a lifetime of growth and prosperity.

Progreso Financiero is a for-profit institution that believes in the moral collateral of its clients and is committed to providing opportunities to help its clients achieve their dreams. Since its founding in 2005, the company has made more than 350,000 loans, extending $400 million in capital to underserved Hispanic families through more than 70 locations across California and Texas and helping improve credit scores for more than 87 percent of its loan customers. For more information, please visit: www.progressfin.com.

About Core Innovation Capital

Core Innovation Capital is the only venture capital fund that invests exclusively in financial technology companies serving America's underbanked consumer market. Its target segment consists of more than 60 million consumers, who generate over $1 trillion in annual income and spend more than $45 billion in fees and interest on financial services per year. The fund partners with proven entrepreneurs who seek above market-rate returns and share its vision to improve the lives of low- to moderate income Americans. For more information about Core Innovation Capital, visit www.corevc.com.

About CFSI

The Center for Financial Services Innovation (CFSI) is the nation's leading authority on financial services for underserved consumers. Through insights gained by producing original research; promoting cross sector collaboration; advising organizations and companies by offering specialized consulting services; shaping public policy; and investing in nonprofit organizations and start-ups, CFSI delivers a deeply interconnected suite of services benefiting underserved consumers. Since 2004, CFSI has worked with leaders and innovators in the business, government and nonprofit sectors to transform the financial services landscape. For more on CFSI, go to www.cfsinnovation.com or follow on Twitter at @cfsinnovation.