Akoya will deliver consumer-permissioned bank account data to EDGE and its consumer lending customers for better informed underwriting decisions
Data access network Akoya and cash flow bureau EDGE announced that they have entered into a partnership for Akoya’s consumer-permissioned, secure data network to power EDGE’s cash flow analytics and risk scores.
Through this partnership, the nation’s largest banks as well as thousands of regional financial institutions and credit unions that utilize the leading core banking systems will provide consumer-permissioned financial data to EDGE as the underpinning of data enrichment and credit risk analytics that EDGE delivers to consumer lenders throughout the U.S.
“The entire team at Akoya is excited to partner with EDGE in its mission to enable cash flow underwriting for consumer loans, credit cards, and more with lenders large and small alike,” said Ted Anastasi, Head of Growth at Akoya. “Our core values are aligned around empowering consumers and enabling the credit ecosystem to decision on a more complete financial picture.”
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EDGE recently announced its status as a consumer reporting agency, establishing the first and only cash flow bureau with risk analytics equivalent to mainstream credit bureaus but based entirely on bank balance and transaction data from aggregators and data access networks like Akoya.
“As a CRA, we’re committed to the highest level of data privacy and security standards,” said EDGE’s CEO, Brian Reshefsky. “In combination with the protocols and protections core to Akoya’s network, we’re uniquely positioned to drive broader adoption of cash flow underwriting without compromising the security of each individual consumer’s personal information.”
The combined data and analytics of Akoya and EDGE will enable lenders to make underwriting decisions based on more intelligence about a consumer’s ability to pay than traditional credit reports and scores have allowed. Better data leading to better decisions enables EDGE customers to approve more loans and offer better terms to credit-seeking consumers.
Akoya is unique in not only its inception as a jointly owned service of the nation’s largest financial institutions but also in the methods by which it accesses and processes consumer financial data. By the end of 2023, Akoya will enable access to over 70% of U.S. bank accounts all through consumer-permissioned, direct, API-enabled connectivity.
Unlike legacy bank data aggregators, Akoya does not screen scrape any account at any financial institution – 100% of Akoya’s data comes directly from the consumer’s financial institution or its core banking system. Nor does Akoya retain, store, or resell any consumer credentials passed through its platform to customers such as EDGE.
“Our business model is a natural fit with EDGE,” added Anastasi. “Akoya exists to provide access to consumers’ data at the upstream banks we serve whenever and however consumers wish to share their data. When consumers seeking credit provide permission to EDGE and its customers to access their data, everyone in the value chain from banks to lenders to consumers enjoys the added comfort that it’s a consumer reporting agency facilitating the underwriting decision.”
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The solutions delivered by EDGE that will be powered by Akoya’s data include:
- EdgeConnect: Consumer-permissioned banking activity data including balances and transactions, harmonized and normalized in EDGE’s analytics engine across data providers
- EdgeIncome: Detection of deposits from an employer or benefits provider analyzed for consistency and stability to enable EDGE customers to underwrite against verified income
- EdgeEnrich: Actionable insights built on top of EdgeConnect data that lenders can utilize in their own credit risk models / scorecards and which power Edge’s industry-leading credit risk score
- EdgeScore: Expanding suite of credit risk scores similar to FICO2 and VantageScore2 based entirely on consumer-permissioned cash flow data
- EdgeRefine: Turnkey solution to inform credit box, decision tree, and scorecard rules for seamless plug-and-play integration of EDGE insights with lenders’ existing underwriting processes
- EdgeMonitor: Ongoing risk analytics and alerts over the life of an open credit account that enable lenders to proactively engage consumers who encounter financial stress in order to reach mutually beneficial outcomes
“The quality, certainty, and immediacy that Akoya provides are a step-change for our business,” added Reshefsky. “Our customers can decision with more confidence with the highest quality data and connectivity in the industry. At the same time, consumers can engage with EDGE and our lending customers with more confidence than ever that their data privacy and security concerns are addressed and resolved thanks to our partnership with Akoya.”
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