Bridge Bank announced it has extended a senior loan to Aura, a mission-driven financial technology company that offers affordable loans to hard-working families. The financing will be used to support the company’s rapid expansion as it provides affordable financial service products to underserved communities.

This new loan comes during a period of rapid growth for Aura in which the company has provided approximately $750MM in loans to nearly 344,000 borrowers at 1,050 partner locations since 2014. Aura uses technology that goes beyond credit scores to determine borrowers’ ability to repay and enables local businesses to administer credit applications.

“We are excited to work with Aura due to their stellar management and mission-driven approach of providing financial solutions to consumers that may be ignored elsewhere,” said Mike Lederman, senior managing director of Bridge Bank’s technology banking group.

“Aura has experienced tremendous growth in recent years and our Bridge Bank team looks forward to supporting Aura in their continued development and success.”

“We are thrilled to be working with Bridge Bank, one of the premier sources of capital for fast-growing startups,” said James Gutierrez, co-founder and chief executive officer of Aura. “This new financing will help us keep pace with growth and empower more hard-working families with our credit-building loans.”

According to Aura, millions of working families in America lack access to safe and affordable loans and are vulnerable to predatory lenders. Aura provides borrowers with affordable loans that have saved over $475MM in additional fees and interest as compared with predatory options. Two-thirds of Aura’s borrowers have grown their credit score by an average of 312 points after two loans.
Loans by Aura are made possible by its innovative social bonds program, which enables banks and other financial institutions to invest in loans to low-income individuals, while generating compelling returns. In total, Aura has raised over $526MM in social bonds and $230MM in financing to fund its loans.