James Gutierrez is a business professional and social entrepreneur who’s based in the San Francisco, Bay Area. The entrepreneur is a pioneer in the founding of Community Development Financial Institutions. The CDFIs provide micro-lending services to low- and moderate-income borrowers. Gutierrez is a seed-stage investor. He’s been part of the founding efforts, which have created business ventures such as Oportun, Aura, and Magic Bean Stalk. James Gutierrez is an alumnus of Yale University and the Stanford Graduate School of Business. He acquired his B.A. in Economics and an MBA from Yale and Stanford, respectively.

James’ first entrepreneurial venture involved the founding of Progreso Financiero, which later became Oportun. He co-founded the venture while still at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. He later co-founded Insikt, which later became known as Aura. Oportun and Aura have served as payday loan alternatives, which provide loans of up to $4000 to under-banked and low- and medium-income earners across different states in the U.S.

Oportun and Aura provided their loan services to people with economic disadvantages all across states such as Arizona, Texas, Illinois, and California. The firms facilitated their service provision via a network of brick-and-mortar establishments and through chains of money transfer providers such as DolEx. The firms are also connected to their clientele through a network of partner retailing institutions such as tax preparation service providers, money transfer shops, and auto insurance companies.

Apart from being a co-founder and successful leader of Oportun and Aura, James Gutierrez has also served as a board member of the Centennial Advisory Committee and the Federal Reserve Board’s Consumer Advisory Council. James Gutierrez has also invested in leading tech companies such as Symphony Commerce, StubHub, OkCupid, and Trulia. Gutierrez is also an author and facilitator of the passing of federal laws on increasing the availability of micro-lending services and loans.

Follow James Gutierrez on Facebook: http://Facebook.com/JamesGutierrezFinTech