Leading fintech association growing to advance responsible innovation and inclusivity within financial services‍

WASHINGTON, DC (April 28, 2021) — Today, the American Fintech Council (“AFC”) announced that its Community Advisory Board is expanding to include more leading voices of consumer advocacy, community economic development, and the academy. New members of the American Fintech Council Community Advisory Board include Opportunity Finance Network, the University of Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance, the African American Credit Union Coalition and former CFPB official Professor Christopher Peterson of the University of Utah.  

The Community Advisory Board will work with AFC members and leadership to advance a more responsible, inclusive, customer-centric financial system.  

“We are delighted to be collaborating with the American Fintech Council as we work towards our mission of creating and transferring knowledge that supports evidence-based decision making in FinTech,” said Tania Ziegler, Global Benchmarking Lead at the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance.

In addition to deepening the dialogue between fintech, consumer advocacy, and CDFIs, the AFC and its Community Advisory Board will pursue shared policy and regulatory goals addressing topics such as preventing discriminatory outcomes in the use of artificial intelligence, responsible lending, and use of data to advance financial inclusion.  

"We look forward to bringing the perspective of community development financial institutions (CDFIs) to the AFC Community Advisory Board’s discussions about access to responsible financial  products and services,” said Dafina Williams, Senior Vice President of Public Policy at Opportunity Finance Network, the national association of CDFIs.  

The AFC has been actively engaged with state and federal legislatures and regulators on these issues. Recently the AFC worked with the Woodstock Institute – an existing Community Advisory Board member – to support passage of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus’ economic equity  agenda, which included a state-wide 36% APR cap modeled on the Military Lending Act.  

“The public deserves reasonable consumer protection laws and responsible financial products,” said former CFPB official Professor Christopher Peterson. “I’m looking forward to volunteering with the American Fintech Council to help expand the federal interest rate limit that currently protects military service members to include every American.”  

Existing members of the Community Advisory Board include the Woodstock Institute, Accion Opportunity Fund, Capital Good Fund, and Professor Cornelius Hurley of Boston University.