Bud partners with Fluro to ‘supercharge’ credit decisioning

Embedded consumer lender Fluro has chosen to integrate data intelligence platform Bud Financial’s AI capabilities to power its decisioning engine and affordability assessments.

Both Fluro’s existing and new customers will benefit from the integration of Bud’s Open Banking data and transaction AI, which use data intelligence services to identify and categorise customers’ income versus expenses, and discretionary versus non-discretionary spending.

More than 60% of Fluro’s customers have chosen to opt into Open Banking, granting access to their financial information.

“We’re thrilled that this partnership empowers Fluro to supercharge its decisioning and underwriting practices,” said George Dunning, founder and chief operating officer of Bud.

“As consumers feel the continued pressures from current economic instability, a growing number of our society – those that are self-employed, in the gig economy, or those with a thin credit history, for example – are increasingly faced with challenges when it comes to accessing credit.”

He added that through its partnership with Bud, Fluro will have access to its “advanced data intelligence capabilities” to improve the accuracy and speed of its decision-making, thereby improving borrower outcomes and helping consumers mitigate these challenges.

Fluro, which launched in 2014, serves in excess of 37,000 customers and processes over 400,000 quote requests each month, having intermediated more than £300 million in loans.

Nick Harding, chief executive officer and co-founder of Fluro, said: “In the face of the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, Bud’s platform will provide us with an even more holistic view of consumers’ financial profiles, enabling us to offer loans with real-time context, and with unparalleled speed and safety.

“This aligns with our mission as a business to leverage technology to simplify credit and improve the financial wellbeing of individuals.”

Harding added that in the current economic environment, it is “crucial” that lenders support customers who have fallen into difficulty, “but they also need to ensure that their underwriting criteria is constantly adapted to facilitate thorough affordability assessments”.

Bud launched in the US earlier this year and, last month, made its first major announcement with the news it has joined Google Cloud Marketplace in the US.

Bud said in doing so, it will “reach a broader base of customers”.