E-Loan is a subsidiary of Banco Popular North America (BPNA), which is itself a subsidiary of Banco Popular, Inc., an international financial services provider. E-Loan banking is available exclusively in the U.S., providing banking services to consumers that include savings accounts, home equity loans, home mortgages and auto loans.

History

Chris Larsen and Janina Pawlowski became partners in 1997 and founded E-Loan. The original purpose of the company was to provide home mortgages online. The initial funding for E-Loan came the following year from Sequoia Capital.

E-Loan was successful in the mortgage business and Banco Popular, Inc. acquired the company through its New York-chartered banking subsidiary. From its inception, E-Loan has helped consumers with mortgages through a variety of methods. They have actively lobbied Congress for the mortgage industry, and they provide alternative lenders to customers in cases where it would be more advantageous for the customer to go outside of E-Loan.

In 2006, E-Loan began offering banking services in the form of online savings accounts and certificates of deposit. The following year, due to restructuring, E-Loan cut 500 workers from their payroll. In 2008, Banco Popular announced that E-Loan would no longer offer direct mortgages, but banking services would continue.

E-Loan Banking Services

The primary banking services offered by E-Loan are savings accounts and CDs. Their signature savings account is called the Savings Plus Account. All savings accounts begin as a Savings Plus Account, but if minimum requirements are not meant, it reverts to a standard savings account with lower interest rates.

Opening a Savings Plus Account requires a minimum deposit of $5,000. After the initial deposit, a minimum deposit of $100 per month is required. If the account holder does not meet the minimum deposit for 60 days, the account reverts to a standard savings account. The Savings Plus Account is actually a money market account opened through BPNA. The bank allows account holders the standard six monthly withdrawals with no penalty.

E-Loan banking also offers CDs. A minimum of $10,000 is required for a CD. CD term options are much wider than at many banks, especially online banks. Twelve tiers of term lengths range from one month to six years, with six of those tiers for terms of 1 year or less. Interest rates are calculated on a three-tier system: $10,000 to $49,999.99, $50,000 to $99,999.99 and $100,000 or greater.

E-Loan banking is backed by a stable international corporation and North American bank chartered in the United States, but the company itself is little more than a shell. Other subsidiaries of Banco Popular provide all loan services and banking services, while E-Loan provides customer service.