Pioneer Press: Sunrise Bank and a nonprofit team to serve the Twin Cities’ ‘unbanked’

“It’s pricey to be poor. Tracy Fischman, executive director of the St. Paul-based nonprofit Prepare + Prosper, points out that low incomes and poor credit will net higher interest rates on home, car and business loans, and can even complicate…

American Banker: Mobile app for underbanked looks to go national

“You could easily mistake Anne Leland Clark, a Twin Cities nonprofit executive, for a banker with with big, national ambitions as she discusses her organization’s digital platform for the underbanked. The product, known as Fair Financial,…

Minnesota Business: Banking program to provide alternatives for underserved communities

“Twin Cities-based nonprofit Prepare + Prosper has joined forces with Sunrise Banks to launch the pilot phase of its three-part FAIR (Financial Access in Reach) Financial Solution. Designed to aid financially underserved individuals in…

[News Advisory] Prepare + Prosper Launches Pilot Phase of Three-Product FAIR Financial Solution to Address Needs of Financially Underserved

Organization Partners with Sunrise Banks to Issue the FAIR Products to 100 People Contact: Cathy Kennedy, Cathryn Kennedy Consulting – 612-309-3951 Pam McCarthy-Kern, Cathryn Kennedy Consulting – 612-360-0647 Stacy Opitz, Prepare +…

Star Tribune: New program aims to provide lower-cost alternative to payday lenders

“Twin Cities-based nonprofit Prepare + Prosper and Sunrise Banks will announce Wednesday a multiyear plan to provide thousands of low-income families with an alternative to payday lenders and check-cashing operators. The Financial Access in Reach…

Star Tribune: Nonprofit Prepare + Prosper helps Minnesota families claim $24.6 million at tax time

“The tedious annual ritual of tax preparation is a chore for many Minnesotans. Nonprofit Prepare + Prosper sees the yearly accounting as something else — a multimillion dollar “money moment,” when families in need get some help on tax preparation…

Finance & Commerce: How money worries affect job performance

“Approximately one in five employees admits to skipping work to deal with a financial problem, according to a MetLife study. The average worker spends 13 hours per month worrying about money at work, per Mercer. And an unexpected expense of…

Finance & Commerce: Turning ‘unbanked’ into savers

“Stephanie Smith, a special education teaching assistant and mother of two, has worked for years to get her finances in order. But she thought checking accounts weren’t for her. Many banks have minimum balance requirements and high fees for…

Star Tribune: Guaranty Bank, St. Paul nonprofit launch financial bundle for those with banking needs

“Thousands of Twin Citians are without a banking account. For them, just to use and save the money they earn can be an expensive hassle. St. Paul nonprofit Prepare + Prosper will launch a bundle of products on Tuesday for low-income,…

Star Tribune: TCF launches new service aimed partly at the ‘underbanked’

“Banks are starting to make a bigger play for a market they’ve long ignored: people without a traditional bank account. The latest company to aim for customers outside the financial mainstream is TCF Financial. The Wayzata-based company is…