How AI is helping Dallas-based Yendo bridge the gap of financial inequality

The fintech firm which recently raised $50 million in funding, has ambitions that will make it more than “just another AI deal,” the founder says.

With the backing from Mark Cuban, Lyft co-founder Logan Green, and others, Yendo plans to expand beyond vehicle-secured credit cards into full-service digital banking

When Jordan Miller discovered 65 million Americans don’t have access to a mainstream credit card or bank loan, the Southern Methodist University alum set out to address the glaring inequality in retail banking – a state of play that disproportionately impacts working class consumers.

Now, having obtained $50 million worth of backing from the likes of Mark Cuban, Lyft co-founder Logan Green and FPV Ventures among others, the company is leveraging artificial intelligence to address the problem, and gearing up to expand into digital banking.

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In a recent interview with the Dallas Morning News, Miller said Yendo plans to roll out other asset-backed credit products, as well as checking and savings accounts, later this year. The company’s services are currently available in 43 states, and it plans to expand across the country.

Using AI to address financial inequality

According to FDIC data, an estimated 14% of U.S. households are considered “underbanked,” i.e. having a bank account but with limited access to other forms of mainstream credit. It makes that population reliant on sketchier nonbank alternatives that often carry punitively high fees and interest rates.

Enter Yendo. Since its infancy, Miller set out to provide an alternative to payday and title loans to the tens of millions who can’t qualify for conventional credit cards or bank loans.

Miller ― ranked on Forbes’ “30 Under 30” list in 2020 ― wanted to utilize the untapped equity from cars and other automobiles to provide credit to those with subprime credit scores.

The entrepreneur staked his thesis on the idea that “the costs to offer financial services even beyond the credit card is one of the biggest inhibitors to financial opportunity,” he explained in an interview. Since launching in 2022, Yendo has become a force in the fintech field, making a million dollars in revenue in the first 30 days.

The rigorous checks and balances employed by banks and other conventional lenders makes the process of authorizing a loan for someone with lower income or subpar credit very expensive.

“[For] traditional lenders it may cost them $500 or more just to give you the loan because of the paperwork,” said Miller. This forces lenders to charge a high interest rate that many cannot afford.

For its part, Yendo is able to cut the costs of traditional banks using artificial intelligence technology. The AI’s computer vision system scans applicants’ car photos and can spot damage, match ownership documentation with the DMV to spot fraud and ask for new angles, allowing Yendo to automate a majority of the application process.

“Our system can do the entire security process in five seconds,” according to Miller. That allows the company to rip out the cost structure of traditional lenders. And with its new capital raise, Yendo plans to expand into broader banking.

“This is the fuel for us to go, expand on the thesis, push into other asset classes, and transform our customers’ financial lives outside of the first product that we did,” said Miller. The company’s goal is to focus on new credit and banking products, and has ambitions to penetrate other customer markets.

According to Miller, the 65 million Americans denied traditional credit products hold over a trillion dollars worth of cars and $ 2.2 trillion in home equity – making the demographic an untapped market with enormous potential for investing in lending.

Miller explains the next step for Yendo is about scale and impact. “How do we take our AI engine and new cost structure that we’ve developed and overcome inefficiencies that plague banking for the modern American?” he asked.

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Dallas’ fintech scene has slowly been gaining momentum, with startups like Apex Fintech Solutions, GigWage, and Zirtue joining established financial players. Still, Miller says the city’s biggest hurdle is human resources.

“The biggest problem that I see is that we need more software engineers and product managers,” says Miller. “Dallas has committed and is working on it. It’s just a long road.”

According to the founder, Yendo’s success represents more than just a win for the city’s startup economy. It’s proof that innovation doesn’t have to come from Silicon Valley to make a national impact. And as Yendo prepares to move beyond credit cards into digital banking, Miller said he’s determined to keep his company grounded in a broader mission.

“We’re not just another AI deal, ” he said, “we actually want to change the fabric of finance in this country.”