Elevate Credit, Inc. (NYSE: ELVT) (“Elevate” or “Company”), a leading tech-enabled provider of innovative and responsible online credit solutions for consumers, today announced that its internal thinktank, the Center for the New Middle Class (“CNMC”), will collaborate with University of Georgia’s (“UGA”) Department of Financial Planning, Housing and Consumer Economics to publish research and insights on the financial wellbeing of middle class Americans. The two-year partnership will allow the CNMC to showcase data it has collected to better understand the unique challenges faced by non-prime Americans—those with credit scores below 700. Over the past four years, CNMC has collected more than 20,000 consumer surveys, tracking 50 metrics that encompass household consumer finance.

UGA’s Department of Financial Planning, Housing and Consumer Economics, which researches financial, housing, and consumer questions that directly affect family economic well-being, will co-author papers with CNMC with the goal of publishing this research in a peer reviewed journal. In addition to the academic research partnership, Elevate will serve as a Department sponsor to further the academic contributions of Ph.D. students and faculty.

“We are incredibly excited to partner with one of the leading universities in personal finance education,” said CNMC Executive Director, Jonathan Walker. “CNMC was founded with the mission to engage thought-leaders around improving Americans’ financial resilience. Our partnership with UGA will provide unprecedented insight into the challenges non-prime Americans face and identify ways in which this growing demographic can be better served by financial institutions.”

Elevate’s CEO Jason Harvison added, “We are proud to support and contribute to academic pursuits that have the potential to make a difference in the lives of middle class Americans. Our partnership with UGA provides us with a platform to share the substantial knowledge we have gained since the launch of CNMC in 2017. We are grateful to UGA for embracing this research and look forward to working with them to improve the economic well-being of consumers and families.”

“CNMC’s vast amount of data and experience with middle class consumers will provide our students with real world insights from which they can pose questions and pursue research that will make a meaningful impact in the study of personal finance,” said Swarn Chatterjee, Department Head for Financial Planning, Housing and Consumer Economics at UGA. “We look forward to collaborating closely with our partners at CNMC and Elevate to help shape the future of consumer financial literacy and wellness.”

For more information on the mission, insights and advocacy work of the CNMC, please visit www.newmiddleclass.org.

About Elevate

Elevate (NYSE: ELVT), together with the banks that license its marketing and technology services, has originated $9.5 billion in credit to more than 2.6 million consumers to date. Its responsible, tech-enabled online credit solutions provide immediate relief to customers today and help them build a brighter financial future. The company is committed to rewarding borrowers’ good financial behavior with features like interest rates that can go down over time, free financial training and free credit monitoring. Elevate’s suite of groundbreaking credit products includes RISE, Elastic and Today Card. For more information, please visit http://corporate.elevate.com.

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