Fig Loans was founded by two Wharton Business School graduates who were frustrated that high-interest payday loans were the only emergency funding available to subprime borrowers. John Li and Jeffrey Zhou were determined to create a model of responsible lending. A model that would align business returns with the financial health of the borrower.

Today, Fig Loans does exactly that. Fig maximizes their profit by building up the financial health of their customers. Their model starts with the Fig Loan, a socially responsible alternative to predatory payday loans that was designed in collaboration with United Way of Houston and incorporates the CFPB’s small dollar lending remedies. The loan serves as an entry point and naturally transitions into a longer-term credit building product.

In the short term, Fig provides a socially responsible, credit building alternative to payday loans. In the long term, Fig helps improve consumers’ financial health by building their credit up so they can access affordable mainstream credit products. In this way, Fig offers Americans with bad credit a second chance to rebuild credit and regain access to traditional credit products.

Keywords: socially responsible lending, social impact, impact investing, micro lending, small dollar loans, credit building loans

Sector: Service with Minor Environmental Footprint
Size: 1-9 employees

B Corp Certified – Impact Score: 121