José A. Quiñonez

Financial Services Innovator Class of 2016
Portrait of José A. Quiñonez

Developing a model for establishing the creditworthiness of underbanked populations that is affording them a pathway to mainstream financial services and improving their financial stability.

location icon Location
San Francisco, California
age iconAge
45 at time of award
website iconWebsite(s)

About José's Work

José A. Quiñonez is a financial services innovator creating a pathway to mainstream financial services and non-predatory credit for individuals with limited or no financial access. A disproportionate number of minority, immigrant, and low-income households are invisible to banks and credit institutions, meaning they have no checking or savings accounts (unbanked), make frequent use of nonbank financial services (underbanked), or lack a credit report with a nationwide credit-reporting agency. Without bank accounts or a credit history, it is nearly impossible to obtain safe loans for automobiles, homes, and businesses or to rent an apartment.

Quiñonez is helping individuals overcome these challenges by linking rotating credit associations or lending circles, a traditional cultural practice from Latin America, Asia, and Africa, to the formal financial sector. Lending circles are typically informal arrangements of individuals pooling their resources and distributing loans to one another. Through the Mission Asset Fund (MAF), Quiñonez has created a mechanism for reporting individuals’ repayment of small, zero-interest loans to credit bureaus and other financial institutions. MAF participants are able to establish a credit history and gain access to credit cards, bank loans, and other services, and lending circles focused on youth provide individuals with fees for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival applications and apartment security deposits (which are particularly needed by youth aging out of foster care). All participants are required to complete a financial training class and are provided with financial coaching and peer support. Since the lending circles were established in 2008, participants’ credit scores, collectively, have increased an average of 168 points.

Quiñonez has established a network of partnerships with the financial services industry to enable other organizations to replicate his approach. With Quiñonez and MAF providing the technology necessary to disperse and track loans (a significant hurdle for many nonprofits) and assisting in securing local partners and investors, 53 nonprofit providers in 17 states and the District of Columbia are now using this powerful model in their communities. Quiñonez’s visionary leadership is providing low-income and minority families with the means to secure safe credit, participate more fully in the American economy, and obtain financial security.

Biography

José A. Quiñonez received a B.A. (1994) from the University of California at Davis and an M.P.A. (1998) from Princeton University. He founded Mission Asset Fund in 2007 and continues to serve as CEO. His prior affiliations include the Center for Community Change (2001–2004) and Bread for the World (2000–2001). From 2012 to 2014, he was the inaugural chair of the Consumer Advisory Board of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Published on September 22, 2016

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