FICO has unveiled an inclusion program to boost credit access for underserved groups.
Takeaway Points
- FICO unveils an inclusion program to boost credit access for underserved groups.
- Research has shown that mission-driven financial institutions, like CDFIs & MDIs, that serve minority and other underserved populations often experience challenges in resources.
- FICO powers decisions that help people and businesses around the world prosper.
What did FICO launch?
FICO, a global analytics software leader, on Tuesday announced the launch of its Lenders Leading Inclusion™ Program to empower Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and Minority Depository Institutions (MDIs) to responsibly expand access to credit for underserved communities. By offering access to cutting-edge alternative data scores and financial inclusion strategies, FICO aims to responsibly expand credit access to more people and help consumers achieve financial opportunities.
Julie May, vice president and general manager of Scores at FICO, said, “We created this program to support MDIs and CDFIs with the tools and resources they need to broaden their lending reach to more credit-ready applicants, including those with little or no credit history. The Lenders Leading Inclusion Program underscores FICO’s commitment to helping lenders responsibly expand credit access and opportunities to more people.”
Kevin King, vice president of Credit Strategy at LexisNexis Risk Solutions, a data, technology and analytics company, commented, “As a pioneer in leveraging alternative data to advance financial inclusion, LexisNexis® Risk Solutions is proud to align with FICO to support this program. We understand the importance of expanding access to credit for consumers and the financial institutions providing it. Alternative data is a critical driver of financial inclusion and being able to get access to a product like FICO Score XD can enable lenders to approve more applicants for financial products and provide opportunities that had previously been out of reach.”
According to the report, research has shown that mission-driven financial institutions, like CDFIs & MDIs, that serve minority and other underserved populations often experience challenges in resources, including lack of access, capacity and technical support to adopt new technologies that can expand lending opportunities to more people.
Why is FICO launching the program?
FICO said it is launching the Lenders Leading Inclusion Program to make critical resources available as part of FICO’s Global Financial Inclusion Initiative to improve lenders’ decision-making and forward financial inclusion efforts around the world.
About FICO
FICO (NYSE: FICO) powers decisions that help people and businesses around the world prosper. Founded in 1956, the company is a pioneer in the use of predictive analytics and data science to improve operational decisions. FICO holds more than 200 US and foreign patents on technologies that increase profitability, customer satisfaction and growth for businesses in financial services, insurance, telecommunications, health care, retail and many other industries. Using FICO solutions, businesses in more than 80 countries do everything from protecting 4 billion payment cards from fraud, to improving financial inclusion, to increasing supply chain resiliency. The FICO® Score, used by 90% of top US lenders, is the standard measure of consumer credit risk in the US and has been made available in over 40 other countries, improving risk management, credit access and transparency.
