FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RuralPulse Micro-Lending Platform Launches $23 Million Rural Expansion, Targeting 1.2 Million Unbanked Borrowers
AI-driven credit scoring and on-ground agent network cut approval times to under 30 minutes, opening working-capital lines for farmers and micro-enterprises across 14 previously unserved counties.
Austin, TX – November 20, 2025
RuralPulse, a mission-driven fintech licensed by the U.S. Treasury as a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), today announced the nationwide rollout of its mobile-first micro-lending platform to 14 of the most financially underserved rural counties in Texas, Mississippi, and Kentucky. The expansion is backed by a $23 million blended-finance facility led by the Impact Investing arm of Prudential Financial and supplemented by a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Community Facilities Program.
The launch arrives as new Federal Reserve data show that 39 percent of U.S. farms and 57 percent of rural micro-enterprises still lack access to credit under $50,000, a gap conservatively estimated at $32 billion. According to a 2024 market analysis, the global micro-lending market is on pace to more than double from USD 233 billion in 2025 to USD 541 billion by 2034, with rural and agricultural segments accounting for the fastest regional growth at 9.8 percent CAGR .
RuralPulse addresses the chronic collateral shortage in these markets by deploying an AI credit engine that ingests 240 alternative data points—ranging from rainfall patterns to farm-produce off-take contracts—to generate a three-digit Financial Inclusion Score. Pilot programs completed last quarter in East Texas recorded a 4.7 percent delinquency rate, roughly half the sector average for unsecured rural credit.
“Traditional banks red-line rural borrowers not because they are risky, but because they are data-poor,” said Maya Collins, Chief Executive Officer of RuralPulse. “Our expansion proves that granular, real-time data and human-centered loan design can unlock responsible, profitable lending where others see only desert.”
The platform offers revolving credit lines from $300 to $25,000 at a maximum annual percentage rate (APR) of 15.9 percent—below the 17.3 percent average APR reported for U.S. micro-loans in 2024. Farmers can draw funds instantly via debit card or USSD menu on basic feature phones; repayments are synchronized with harvest cash-flow cycles, allowing bullet payments every 90 or 180 days without penalty.
RuralPulse has simultaneously hired 62 locally based loan officers who host weekly “office hours” at co-op stores and livestock auctions, a model borrowed from successful CDFI collaboratives in East Texas that have already deployed over $30 million in rural impact capital . The company projects that 58 percent of its new borrowers will be women-led enterprises, aligning with global findings that women micro-borrowers maintain repayment rates 97 percent or higher.
Early adopters include Stokes Farms, a 40-acre sweet-potato operation in Humphreys County, Mississippi. Owner Carla Stokes used a $12,000 RuralPulse line to purchase drip-irrigation equipment, increasing yield 22 percent and enabling her to secure a produce contract with a regional grocer. “I walked into the co-op thinking I’d get another high-interest title loan,” Stokes said. “Twenty-five minutes later I had approval and a 9.8 percent rate—my farm has never looked better.”
Market analysts attribute the surge in rural micro-lending to converging policy tailwinds. The USDA’s ReConnect Program has injected $714 million into broadband infrastructure this fiscal year, while the CDFI Fund’s allocation climbed to $304 million in 2025, a record high. These public dollars are catalyzing private capital: CDFIs now leverage each federal dollar 8:1, according to the Treasury’s latest impact report.
RuralPulse plans to replicate its model in 42 additional counties across six states by 2027, forecasting a loan book of $180 million and 28,000 active rural borrowers. The company is also exploring carbon-credit financing that would allow farmers to collateralize future sequestration revenue, further reducing dependence on traditional assets.
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G42
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