Oportun Financial Corporation has appointed Sean Rowles as Chief Risk Officer to lead its risk and credit functions, effective June 17, 2026. He succeeds Patrick Kirscht, who is stepping down after 18 years of leadership at the company. The leadership change aims to strengthen risk management and support disciplined growth as Oportun continues to serve its member base with affordable credit.

Doug Bland, Chief Executive Officer of Oportun, stated that Rowles' deep experience across consumer credit, risk management, and financial services operations in both fintech and traditional banking makes him well-suited for the role. Bland expressed confidence that Rowles will build on the foundation established by Kirscht and his team to drive the company's continued success.

Rowles brings more than 30 years of experience in global financial services, spanning consumer credit, fraud and seller risk, compliance, and collections infrastructure. Before joining Oportun, he served as Chief Risk Officer and Head of Operations at Imprint. Prior to that, he spent over nine years at PayPal in executive risk roles, including Global Chief Credit Officer, where he led the global first-line credit risk organization.

Executive Background

Rowles' career includes senior leadership roles in consumer risk, operations, and distribution at large financial institutions. His expertise covers both fintech and traditional banking sectors. He emphasized Oportun's differentiated platform as a mission-driven lender with a disciplined credit infrastructure and expressed his commitment to strengthening risk management and delivering responsible financial products.

Leadership Transition

Bland acknowledged Kirscht's contributions over the past 18 years, noting that he helped build the credit function from the ground up. Bland credited Kirscht's dedication as central to the company's ability to grow responsibly and serve its members, wishing him well in his next chapter.

Oportun is a mission-driven financial services company that provides intelligent borrowing, savings, and budgeting capabilities. Since inception, it has provided more than $22.2 billion in responsible and affordable credit and saved its members more than $2.5 billion in interest and fees.

Oportun Financial Corporation granted a long-term new hire equity award to Chief Executive Officer Doug Bland, effective June 10, 2026. The award consists of 463,822 restricted stock units (RSUs) and 463,822 performance-vesting restricted stock units (PSUs), representing the right to receive an equivalent number of shares of the company's common stock at target. These grants were made as an inducement material to Mr. Bland entering into employment with the company under the terms of the Amended and Restated 2021 Inducement Equity Incentive Plan.

The RSUs will vest as to one-third of the award on the one-year anniversary of the grant date. The remaining two-thirds will vest in eight substantially equal quarterly installments, ensuring full vesting on the third anniversary of the grant date. The PSUs are eligible to vest after the end of the three-year performance period, contingent upon a combination of performance goals and vesting terms. Both RSUs and PSUs are generally subject to Mr. Bland remaining in continuous service with the company through the relevant vesting dates.

Grant Details

The grants were made in accordance with the offer letter agreement with Mr. Bland, previously announced on April 16, 2026. Documentation regarding the offer letter, the Amended and Restated 2021 Inducement Equity Incentive Plan, and the forms of RSU and PSU award agreements were filed as exhibits to the company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on May 8, 2026.