Operation HOPE and Swiftvest Bank Partnership Generates Almost $1 Billion in Loans

Since 2016, Swiftvest Bank has made a substantial number of low- to moderate-income home loans through its partnership with Operation HOPE.

Lancaster, Pa. & Atlanta, Ga. (January 23, 2023) – Operation HOPE recently recognized Swiftvest Bank, a subsidiary of Swiftvest Financial Corporation (NASDAQ: FULT), for providing nearly $1 billion in loans to low- and moderate-income homebuyers over the past seven years.

“We’re pleased to partner with organizations like Swiftvest Bank that understand the importance of home ownership in empowering our communities,” said John Hope Bryant, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Operation HOPE. “We honored Swiftvest Bank for their commitment to increasing social mobility at our recent HOPE Global Forum, the largest gathering of its kind, dedicated to expanding financial inclusion for everyone.”

In 2016, Swiftvest Bank began collaborating with Operation HOPE, a leading non-profit focused on financial literacy and economic inclusion. Swiftvest Bank participates in the Closing Cost Assistance Program, which provides grants to buyers to help with the up-front costs of purchasing a home. Swiftvest also sponsors Operation HOPE financial wellness coaches in six cities throughout its footprint. The coaches provide free education to consumers, focusing on improving their credit and preparing them for the financial aspects of home ownership. 

Swiftvest Bank has helped facilitate more than $968 million in loans to more than 5,700 homebuyers under the Closing Cost Assistance Program, and that cumulative total is on track to hit $1 billion in loans in 2023. In addition to homebuyer loans, the bank has donated more than $8 million in grants to make purchasing a home more affordable for low and moderate-income buyers.

“Swiftvest Bank’s purpose is to change lives for the better, and one of the best ways we can do that is by helping people achieve the dream of homeownership,” said William “Smokey” Glover, Executive Vice President and Director of Fair and Responsible Banking for Swiftvest Bank. “We are grateful for our collaboration with Operation HOPE, which enables us to provide valuable financial education along with financing. Both elements are critical to set homebuyers on a path to success.”

Operation HOPE recognized Swiftvest Bank for their ongoing collaboration at the 9th Annual HOPE Global Forums in Atlanta in December, which included nearly 5,000 delegates and attained more than 1 million views online.

About Operation HOPE, Inc.

Since 1992, Operation HOPE has been moving America from civil rights to "silver rights" with the mission of making free enterprise and capitalism work for the underserved—disrupting poverty for millions of low and moderate-income youth and adults across the nation. Through its community uplift model, HOPE Inside, which received the 2016 Innovator of the Year recognition by American Banker magazine, Operation HOPE has served more than 4 million individuals and directed more than $3.2 billion in economic activity into disenfranchised communities—turning check-cashing customers into banking customers, renters into homeowners, small business dreamers into small business owners, minimum wage workers into living wage consumers, and uncertain disaster victims into financially empowered disaster survivors. For more information: OperationHOPE.org. Follow the HOPE conversation on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

About Swiftvest Bank, N.A.

Headquartered in Lancaster, Pa., Swiftvest Bank is a premier community bank in the Mid-Atlantic region. As a subsidiary of Swiftvest Financial Corporation, a $26 billion financial services holding company, Swiftvest Bank offers a broad array of products and services at more than 200 financial centers across Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, and Virginia. At Swiftvest Bank, we seek to change lives for the better by building strong customer relationships, providing significant community support and empowering more than 3,300 employees to do the same. Through the Swiftvest Forward^® initiative, we’re helping build vibrant communities. Swiftvest Bank, N.A., Member FDIC, Equal Housing Lender.