Serving Low-Income Populations Requires Innovation
‘We have to be creative at taking the relatively limited tools we have at Credit Unions and applying them as effectively as possible.’
By Craig Sauer
Low-income communities need credit unions to be creative, says community development innovator William Bynum.
These hard-hit areas need relief from payday lenders, more public and private investment, and greater access to mainstream financial products and services, he says. But achieving these aims is “hard and it is getting harder.
“Let’s not fool ourselves—it is really tough out there,” says Bynum, CEO of $161 million asset Hope Credit Union, Jackson, Miss., and its sponsor, Hope Enterprise Corp.
The organizations provide commercial financing, mortgages, and technical assistance for businesses, entrepreneurs, home buyers, and community development projects in the economically distressed areas of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee.
“We really have to be creative at taking the relatively limited tools that we have at credit unions and applying them as effectively as possible,” Bynum says.
He says credit unions seeking to serve low-income populations should focus on:
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