Key Secured Credit Card® Builds Financial Futures for More than 30,900 Program Graduates

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Jul 29, 2024, 09:07 ET

Achievement celebrates hard work done by clients to build their credit history and grow their financial future

CLEVELAND, July 29, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, KeyBank (NYSE: KEY) announced that the Spring 2024 graduating class of the Key Secured Credit Card^® program comprises more than 2,800 clients who have worked hard to improve their credit scores and establish financial stability. This class brings the total number of graduates to more than 30,900 clients since the program's inception in 2019.

The Key Secured Credit Card is a critical piece of KeyBank's commitment to financial education and empowerment, helping clients who are ready to establish their credit history or want to improve it. According to the KeyBank 2024 Financial Mobility Survey, 63% of Americans believe that financial stability is what most people think of when they hear "thriving in America." The Key Secured Credit Card^® helps to improve financial wellness by providing eligible clients with opportunities to establish or improve their credit history, bolster savings while building credit, and create better money habits and a foundation of knowledge for other credit cards and products¹. Graduating from the Key Secured Credit Card program may assist clients in securing traditional credit so they can continue their financial growth toward achieving future goals like purchasing a car or owning a home.

"In our current economic environment, Americans are working to build their financial resiliency," said Dan Brown, Director of Consumer Product Management at KeyBank. "Through the lessons learned and goals set in the Key Secured Credit Card program, these graduates have empowered themselves with the necessary skills to help them on their financial paths."

When clients graduate, their Key Secured Credit Card^® is upgraded to an unsecured credit card and the hold on the funds in their Key Active Saver^® account that were pledged as collateral to secure the Key Secured Credit Card are released. New as of this year, as part of the graduation process, 1,200 clients received a credit line increase in addition to strengthening their credit profile with the help of the Key Secured Credit Card. An enhanced communication process was also introduced to all participants, aiming to provide greater clarity and transparency on their credit building journey, as well as sound advice and guidance that further supports their financial health.

Through the Secured Credit Card program, the Spring 2024 graduates have made major steps to improve their financial wellbeing, such as:

26% were designated as having low FICO scores at origination. The average improvement in credit score for those in the "low" category was 73 points.

Since the inception of this program, the tenure and impact of the Key Secured Credit Card program are further enhanced by the positive graduation results. More than 30,900 clients have started or completed their journey through the program, with 60% of the clients who graduated having done so within 12 months and 93% within 24 months.

For those who entered the program with no FICO score, the average score they show at graduation is 721. Throughout the program's history, those who begin with a FICO score at origination have shown an average increase of 63 points when they graduate¹.

Additional Key Secured Credit Card features include:

While clients build their credit, their Key Secured Credit Card deposit must be kept in a Key Active Saver account, allowing users to build their credit and savings in tandem. The monthly maintenance service charge on the Key Active Saver account is waived for Key Secured Credit Card clients². In addition, there is a $0 annual fee on the Key Secured Credit Card.
Cardholders can opt in to check their FICO score for free anytime³ in online and mobile banking. It's quick, easy and does not impact their credit score.
Unlike most prepaid or debit cards, the Key Secured Credit Card reports clients' history to credit bureaus, allowing them to show progress.
With Key's temporary lock security feature, cardholders can easily use online or mobile banking to lock and unlock a misplaced credit card.

For more information on KeyBank's Secured Credit Card, visit https://www.key.com/personal/credit-cards/key-secured-credit-card.jsp

¹Use of the Key Secured Credit Card can help build your credit when the minimum payment is made by the due date, each month.
²The monthly maintenance service charge on the Key Active Saver account will be waived for Key Secured Credit Card clients. The monthly maintenance service charge waiver is only valid as long as the Key Secured Credit Card remains open. If you are graduated to an unsecured card or close your Key Secured Credit Card account, the Key Active Saver monthly maintenance service charge of $4.00 may apply, unless you are the owner on a KeyBank consumer checking account (including KeyBank Hassle-Free Account^®).
³Clients with newly opened credit card accounts may not see their first FICO^® Score in online and mobile banking for up to 90 days after enrollment. In certain circumstances, a FICO^® Score may not be available for various reasons, e.g., having a limited credit history. FICO is a registered trademark of Fair Isaac Corporation in the United States and other countries.

About KeyCorp
KeyCorp's roots trace back nearly 200 years to Albany, New York. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Key is one of the nation's largest bank-based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $187 billion at June 30, 2024.

Key provides deposit, lending, cash management, and investment services to individuals and businesses in 15 states under the name KeyBank National Association through a network of approximately 1,000 branches and approximately 1,200 ATMs. Key also provides a broad range of sophisticated corporate and investment banking products, such as merger and acquisition advice, public and private debt and equity, syndications and derivatives to middle market companies in selected industries throughout the United States under the KeyBanc Capital Markets trade name. For more information, visit https://www.key.com/. KeyBank Member FDIC.

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SOURCE KeyBank