Culturally Relevant Financial Capability: Supporting the Latinx Community with Credit Access

The Latinx community is one of the largest and youngest ethnic groups in the United States, accounting for over 60 million individuals (18% of the population) from 22 countries. Yet, particularly amongst low-income and immigrant consumers, Latino community members remain disproportionately locked out of mainstream financial systems. This blockage is multi-faceted, including immigration status, language barriers, and limited knowledge about the US financial system, in addition to structural racism. To support asset building opportunities, increase bankability, and reduce the reliance on alternative financial systems (AFS), it is vital to explore culturally relevant financial capability programming for Hispanics, who are projected to lead in the labor force and homebuying in the coming decades.

During this session, we will hear from three organizations intentionally serving the Latino community - the National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders (NALCAB), Ariva, and Neighborhood Trust Federal Credit Union. We will first overview the national landscape to understand the breadth of the work conducted by NALCAB members. We then head (virtually) to New York, to hear from Ariva and Neighborhood Trust. Ariva has pursued innovative partnerships, including with the Mexican Consulate, which has resulted in a scalable financial counseling model (the Ventanilla) and one of the largest VITA sites in NYC. Finally, we will hear from Neighborhood Trust, a Juntos Avanzamos designated credit union and CDFI intentionally designing products to be inclusive of the multitude of experiences of the Latino community, including those with ITIN statuses.

Join us to learn from these exemplary models and walk away with new tools and partnership ideas for your own programming! There will be ample time to contribute, so please bring your questions.

Note: We use a variety of terms - Hispanic, Latino, and Latinx - to cover the breadth of preferences of those identifying within this ethnic group.

This session is part of CBA's monthly Community Webinar Series, open to CBA Members and Allies.