US-based student loans and financial education provider Boro has collected $12m in a series A round led by consumer finance provider LexinFintech.
Founded in 2015, Boro supplies loans to US college students such as foreign citizens who lack sufficient credit data for traditional debt. Fixed-term limits are offered to encourage prompt repayment and avoid escalating interest or penalties.
The company’s credit scoring system incorporates non-traditional data such as a student’s educational background, utility payments and bank transactions.
Hao Liu, Boro’s co-founder and chief executive, said: “Our goal is to create meaningful opportunities for students to build healthy borrowing habits that will serve them well beyond their time in college.
“Students today are overserved by unethical lenders. Boro breaks that pattern by helping users get access to stress-free financing that helps them grow their financial confidence and protects them from high-interest rates and hidden fees.”
The capital will go to building Boro’s presence in new US states and an expansion in LexinFintech’s home market of China. Boro had previously secured $100m of debt financing from Arcadia Funds in 2018.