The financial services industry believes there is considerable opportunity in reaching out to unbanked and underbanked consumers. That was the pervasive sentiment at the conclusion of the second Underbanked Financial Services Forum, held in Dallas in June. Produced by the Center for Financial Services Innovation (CFSI) and SourceMedia, this year’s Forum drew a sold-out crowd of over 450 banks, credit unions, alternative service providers, and others for a three-day conference dedicated to topics such as prepaid cards, remittances, credit scoring, and small- dollar loans. While the inaugural conference, held in 2006, focused on legitimizing the profitable and responsible targeting of underbanked consumers, this year’s event concentrated on opportunities in the market and ways to succeed.
The shift in focus was reflected in the exit poll. At the 2006 Forum, 33 percent of respondents indicated that the underbanked were their primary target. That figure grew to 41 percent this year, as many financial service providers zeroed in on the underbanked population as their sole target.