Pasadena Firm Launches Secured Credit Card to Help Those With No Credit History, Poor Credit Scores

A Pasadena-based financial corporation announced the launch of a secured credit card designed to help those with no credit history or poor prior credit scores.

Green Dot Corporation, a financial technology innovator and issuer of prepaid cards in the United States founded in 1999, disclosed the launch of the Green Dot Platinum Visa Secured Card in a statement Thursday.

The card will be backed by the security deposits of customers held at Green Dot Bank, so almost anyone can apply for the card, according to the press release. Opening a bank account is not required to qualify.

According to the Center for Financial Services Innovation, about 108 million Americans do not have credit scores or have low scores that don’t allow them to access affordable credit.

“The Green Dot Platinum Visa Secured Credit Card is just another way Green Dot Bank is helping to open the door to financial inclusion for millions of low and moderate income Americans,” said Lew Goodwin, President of Green Dot Bank in the press release.

Benefits of the card include free online account management, free online bill pay and the ability to pre-quality without impacting one’s credit score, according to the press statement.

Customers who have the card can fund their collateral security deposits and make monthly payments at any Green Dot location. According to the media statement, the payment performance of customers will be reported to the three major credit bureaus, which could help better their credit history over time.

Green Dot is known most for its reloadable MasterCard and Visa prepaid debit cards which can be found in many stores, such as CVS Pharmacy, K-Mart, 7-Eleven and Walgreens. The company has over 100,000 locations in the United States, and some in Shanghai, China.