Challenger bureau claims lead in Open Banking ‘rollout race’

Credit Kudos is now integrated with nine of the UK’s biggest banks.

Credit Kudos claims to have become the first credit bureau to offer a full range of Open Banking services after forging connections with the largest UK banks.

The challenger bureau, which allows borrowers to share data to smooth credit applications, now boasts Open Banking connections with Lloyds, Halifax, Bank of Scotland, Royal Bank of Scotland, NatWest, Ulster Bank, Allied Irish Bank, Danske Bank and HSBC.

Credit Kudos operates as an FCA-authorised Account Information Service Provider (AISP), meaning it can access transactional account data held by the nine largest UK banks under Open Banking rules, which came into effect in January.

Using Credit Kudos, borrowers can verify income and demonstrate creditworthiness using their financial history, without the need to manually fill out forms or upload documents.

The bureau struck a partnership with peer-to-peer lender Lending Works in February of this year to help speed up access to credit for the platform’s borrowers. Through the deal, Lending Works hoped to be able to offer instant, fully automated loans to 90 per cent of its borrowers.

“Open Banking is putting individuals back in control of their own financial data. With Credit Kudos, borrowers can now use Open Banking to make the process of applying for loans faster and easier without impacting their traditional credit score,” said Freddy Kelly, CEO of Credit Kudos.

“We’re excited to be one of the first companies to successfully apply this new technology to improve customer experience in the credit industry.”