BetterFi

Traditional credit underwriting was not built to serve everyone—and the communities left out are not accidental.

Our Executive Director Erin Kilmer Neel moderated a panel on our Underwriting for Racial Justice two-year pilot program, joined by Shannan Herbert, CEO of Washington Area Community Investment Fund, Inc. (Wacif); Spike Hosch, Executive Director of BetterFi; and James Hunter, Chief Advocacy and Culture Officer at New Orleans Firemen's Federal Credit Union at the Just Economy Conference in Washington, D.C. hosted by NCRC.

Together they explored what the pilot revealed: that lenders can better understand borrower context, challenge long-standing assumptions about financial risk, and expand access to credit for communities historically locked out of the financial system—without increasing risk to the institution.
Fairness in lending is not neutrality. It is repair, accountability, and opportunity.

Come hear Spike give updates on BetterFi at the Rotary Club of Grundy County today at lunch – see you there!

📍11:30 CST at Dutch Maid Bakery & Cafe in Tracy City