Innovative Credit Union Launches "Income Passport" to Help Gig, 1099 Workers Access Credit

Telhio Credit Union, today announced an ambitious new initiative designed to help non-standard workers access credit products and services. Developed in partnership with Steady, the effort will enable gig, 1099, and hourly workers that now comprise an estimated one-third of the national labor force to establish the history of earnings required for mortgages and other financial products.

"This is about harnessing the potential of technology to expand economic opportunity for a segment of the population that is exploding but often struggles to access credit," said Derrick Bailey, President of Telhio. "It reflects the fact that the way financial institutions verify income history is out of step with the way that a growing number of Americans work and earn."

Non-standard workers such as 1099 and gig earners, who now make up more than one-third of the U.S. labor force, often struggle to establish the earnings history required to underwrite consumer loans and a wide range of other credit products and financial services. Telhio, a Community Development Financial Institution, is among a growing number of financial institutions addressing this challenge with Steady's Income Passport, which is already used by state workforce agencies to verify income in real time and streamline access to safety net benefits like Unemployment Insurance, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

"Telhio has a well-earned reputation as a financial institution that has prioritized the financial health and stability of its community," said Adam Roseman, CEO and Co-founder of Steady. "This is about embracing the potential of emerging technology to verify income in ways that expand access to credit — and unlock new paths to economic opportunity for non-standard workers and their families."

"We're excited to partner with Telhio to solve a significant blind spot in income verification — and to scale our work into the lending use-case after proven successes with public benefits implementations," said James Haberlen, Steady's Chief Commercial Officer. "Consumer-permission income verification is the way of the future, and we look forward to seeing the impact of this collaboration as a growing number of credit unions embrace the potential of these innovative models."