Nusenda expands microloan program with new partners in Albuquerque, southern New Mexico

Nusenda Credit Union is expanding its microloan program, which offers small loans to entrepreneurs who may not qualify for traditional financing.

Encuentro, an Albuquerque-based adult education program for Latino immigrant families, and 100% Otero, a southern New Mexico nonprofit working to end child poverty, will work with Nusenda to distribute loans of up to $50,000 to business owners that may be considered “not creditworthy” or “unbankable,” said Sara Keller, chief community engagement officer at Nusenda.

“Our philosophy is that that really shouldn’t be how we determine whether or not somebody has access to financial stability,” Keller said. “They’re working with truly underserved communities who do not typically have access to the type of capital that this program allows for them to have.”

The program partners with local nonprofits, cooperatives and schools to connect underserved borrowers with small-business capital and hands-on financial guidance. Since its launch, Nusenda has issued more than $3.2 million through over 500 microloans, helping to create 324 jobs across New Mexico, Texas, Arizona and Colorado.

The credit union recently raised the maximum loan size from $10,000 to $50,000 in response to growing demand. It now works with 23 community partners, including Native Women Lead, Cultivating Coders, the Street Food Institute and the University of New Mexico’s Innovation Academy. Last year, Nusenda partnered with the Black Chamber of Commerce of New Mexico for its microlending program.

“Sometimes something as small as a $500 investment can balloon 10 or 15 or 50 times over to really create financial stability. And if access to a microloan is a path to financial stability and economic prosperity, we want to be able to provide that wherever and as often as possible,” Keller said.

Nusenda is the largest credit union by membership in New Mexico and recently expanded operations into southern New Mexico and Texas.