Propel expands North American footprint with the launch of Fora Credit

By Edlyn Cardoza

Propel Holdings Inc., an innovative FinTech company dedicated to credit inclusion, announced that it has entered the Canadian market with its new brand, Fora Credit – a convenient online credit solution for underserved Canadian consumers.

Nearly 25% of Canadians are either unserved or underserved in the credit market, in many cases, due to a lack of access to credit through traditional financial institutions. In line with Propel’s mission of credit inclusion, Fora was created to provide Canadians with access to a fair, transparent, and flexible credit solution.

“Consumers across the United States have trusted Propel and its operating brands for more than a decade to deliver flexible credit solutions and we are delighted to bring our offering home to Canadians. We fully expect that Fora will become a leading solution for the 25 per cent of Canadians who are unable to access credit through traditional financial institutions,” said Clive Kinross, Propel’s Chief Executive Officer.

Rooted in Propel’s existing flexible, scalable technology infrastructure and capabilities in artificial intelligence, Fora enables consumers to apply online for personal lines of credit of up to C$10,000 through a seamless digital application experience backed by extraordinary customer service. Fora is currently available in Alberta and Ontario, and Propel has plans to roll out Fora into additional provinces across the country in the coming months.

To support the growth of this new Canadian portfolio, Propel announced it has secured a revolving credit facility with an initial aggregate capacity of approximately C$26 million shared between senior lender CWB Maxium Financial Inc., a part of the Canadian Western Bank Financial Group of companies (CWB), and junior lender Bastion Management and affiliates thereof (Bastion), an existing lender to Propel.

“We are pleased to partner with CWB and Bastion on a credit facility for our Canadian business and are looking forward to advancing on our strategic plan through this opportunity for geographic expansion and serving lower-risk markets. Our ability to execute on new programs and work with highly skilled, sophisticated and reputable partners is a cornerstone of our success as a leading fintech company,” continued Kinross.

“I could not be prouder of the Propel team who has been working with tremendous energy and excitement to launch Fora ahead of schedule. We are excited to bring our proven expertise in online lending and our outstanding service teams to our home market after many years of operating programs successfully for U.S. consumers. We are looking forward to providing further updates as the program develops.”