Strands forms partnership with Plaid to expand US presence

Strands, which specialises in AI, machine learning, Open Finance and customer engagement for banks and financial institutions, has partnered with data network Plaid to expand its Open Finance strategy to the US.

By joining forces, consumers and small businesses will be able to connect to financial accounts at more than 12,000 institutions.

According to Strands, which has been part of the CRIF group since 2020, credit unions will benefit from an end-to-end Open Data solution, gaining access to information and capabilities to create customer journeys from new data streams enabled by Plaid.

Through the partnership, Strands’ PFM, business financial management, ‘Engager’ and ‘Carbon Footprint Insight’ capabilities will be “enhanced” by Plaid, with access to multi-source data available in 11.5 seconds, from the module opening to the accounts’ connection.

As part of the partnership, Plaid’s APIs will be included in the ‘Strands as a Service’ offering, which is Strands’ flagship new service model dedicated to the US market.

Edoardo Borsari, managing director at Strands, said: “Plaid and Strands share a data-driven approach that places the end users at its core. We are delighted to join forces with Plaid for this partnership, which will enable us to further expand our presence in the US.

“Together, we are committed to advancing API-based data connectivity solutions that enable consumers to have greater transparency, security, and control over their own finances.”

In May this year, US data analytics start-up Prism Data teamed up with Plaid to help lenders make more informed credit decisions, using Open Banking data.