VIVA triples loan originations after LoanPro migration

VIVA Finance tripled its loan origination volume within the first year of moving its lending operations to LoanPro.

VIVA, an Atlanta-based lender that underwrites personal loans mainly on employment information rather than credit history, made the shift after mounting problems with its previous loan management system. According to the companies, the older platform limited staff access, created data inconsistencies and forced teams to rely on manual work as the lender expanded.

The migration was completed in four months, giving VIVA a new servicing and management system as it sought to handle higher volumes without adding staff at the same rate. The move also gave VIVA's engineering team more flexibility to tailor the system to its loan products and internal processes, LoanPro said.

The case highlights a wider issue for non-bank lenders and financial technology groups as they outgrow early operating models. Many specialist lenders build products for customer acquisition first, then face pressure to replace or rework servicing systems as loan books become larger and more complex.

For VIVA, that pressure came from an employment-based lending model aimed at borrowers who may be underserved by conventional credit scoring methods. Its legacy system could no longer keep pace as loan volumes rose, partly because it lacked modern integration tools and partly because its data structure caused portfolio errors.

The previous system also lacked a web-based interface for agents, limiting how staff could work with accounts. Those constraints pushed more operational work into manual processes, increasing the risk that staffing needs would rise in step with originations.

Payton Lane, Product Manager at VIVA Finance, said automation was the main benefit of the change.

"The biggest benefit we saw with LoanPro is the ability to automate a lot of the tasks we do manually, so that when we grow, we're not hiring servicing agents one-on-one with that growth," Lane said.

"Keeping the team lean, automating manual tasks that don't need to be manual," Lane said.

System shift

LoanPro said its system gave VIVA a single data layer to replace the inconsistent records generated by the earlier platform. It said the set-up also enabled staff to access the platform through a web interface and allowed engineers to make changes through application programming interfaces.

That matters for lenders whose products do not fit standard retail banking templates. Employment-based underwriting, payroll-linked partnerships and varied repayment structures can require adjustments to servicing tools that more rigid software may not allow.

VIVA said cleaner data and a lower operational burden have let it redirect internal effort away from maintaining old infrastructure. The company is now using that foundation to support a broader product plan.

Pete Gerontakis, Vice President of Finance at VIVA Finance, linked the operational shift to the lender's expansion plans.

"We knew we would be able to scale with LoanPro, and doing it now has enabled us to focus on other products and continue to push the pedal to the metal," Gerontakis said.

"I'm not really sure there are any competitors that can do everything LoanPro can," Gerontakis said.

Growth pressure

The companies did not disclose the absolute number of loans originated before and after the migration. They said the increase came without the proportional headcount growth VIVA believes it would likely have needed under its previous system.

That matters in consumer lending, where servicing and collections costs can rise quickly if technology does not reduce manual intervention. For lenders operating on thinner margins or serving customers outside prime credit categories, staffing efficiency can directly affect profitability.

VIVA's model centres on personal loans for workers, with underwriting based primarily on employment data. The company says it serves tens of thousands of borrowers across the US, offering loans of up to USD $15,000 with annual percentage rates starting at 11.99%.

LoanPro, based in Salt Lake City, said more than 600 lenders use its platform for origination, servicing, payments and collections. The company has positioned itself as a provider for lenders seeking to replace older core systems with software that can be adapted through modular components and direct integrations.

Charles Sweeney, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Revenue Officer at LoanPro, said VIVA entered the project with clear growth objectives and a strong understanding of the limits of its old platform.

"VIVA Finance came in with aggressive growth targets and a clear picture of what their legacy system was costing them," Sweeney said.

"The 300% origination growth they've seen in less than a year reflects what's possible when a lender's platform can actually keep up with their business," Sweeney said.