The Marketplace Lending Association (MLA), a member organization created to support the responsible growth of marketplace lending, appointed Nathaniel (Nat) Hoopes as the association’s first executive director.

Hoopes joins the MLA after serving as executive director at the Financial Services Forum in Washington D.C., where he worked on key policy issues affecting the nation’s largest financial firms.

Hoopes has spent more than a decade working in financial services and public policy, and played a key policy role on Capitol Hill in the wake of the financial crisis, including in the development and bipartisan negotiation of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Hoopes also worked on developing legislation to expand opportunities for small businesses and startups through equity crowdfunding as part of the Jumpstart-our-Business-Start-Ups (JOBS) Act.

“As interest in marketplace lending continues to grow and different lending models emerge, there is a need for more education and awareness around the unique advantages of this industry to ensure its responsible growth,” Hoopes said. “This is an exciting moment for marketplace lending, and I’m thrilled to have an opportunity to build and grow an organization that can be a key resource in Washington.”

Hoopes will be responsible for overseeing the strategic direction and day-to-day operations of the association, as well as communicating with the public and policy makers to educate them about marketplace lending. In the coming months, he will work with the board of directors to finalize the association’s governance framework, establish a D.C. office and expand the membership base to include other U.S. lending platforms that are committed to responsible innovation.