Creditinfo Group, TASDEEQ, PACRA and APL partner with Pakistan Banks’ Association to facilitate wider access to housing finance
Consortium will develop a market-level application scorecard and income estimation model to boost financial inclusion in Pakistan
LONDON, UK, 21st October 2021 – Pakistan Banks’ Association (PBA) recently announced that it has entered into a strategic partnership with a consortium of leading financial services and technology businesses to improve access to finance for low-income segments of the population currently excluded from traditional housing finance.
The consortium, comprised of Creditinfo Group, a global credit information and fintech service provider; TASDEEQ, Pakistan’s first SBP Licensed Credit bureau, offering cutting-edge reports, statistical scores, and analytical tools for the financial industry for efficient credit risk and strategic decision making; Pakistan Credit Rating Agency (PACRA) and Analytics Pvt Ltd, a leading Artificial Intelligence, Business Analytics, Big Data Analytics and Data Sciences solutions provider, will work together to develop for PBA a market-level application scorecard and income estimation model aimed at streamlining risk assessments and enabling a wider pool of applicants to access financing for their housing needs.
The consortium brings together industry-leading credit risk analytics knowledge, alongside extensive experience in Pakistan and emerging markets globally. The development and deployment of the automated income estimation & credit assessment methodology will be overseen through the PBA platform.
This project is being managed by the PBA Technology Working Group, comprising CEOs and members of Bank Alfalah, HBL and Faysal Bank as well as the CEO of PBA and a senior official of State Bank of Pakistan. This is a novel and unique project, and the first of its kind in Pakistan, where a scorecard will be developed using an alternative source of data.
The scorecard project will support the Naya Pakistan Housing Programme (NPHP), a government-backed initiative providing low-cost, affordable housing to deserving individuals in Pakistan that is expected to be a catalyst to accelerated economic activity and increased job opportunities in the region following the negative impact of Covid-19.
Mr. Tawfiq Husain, CEO, PBA stated, “We are very excited with the transformational impact this project can have on our members’ consumer lending and credit initiation and risk management capabilities. Starting with Low Cost Housing Financing, we hope to be able to put this model to use for other products in consumer lending.”
Mr. Omar Khalid, COO TASDEEQ commented: “TASDEEQ, PACRA and Analytics together bring a diverse array of expertise to the project. This synergy coupled with Creditinfo’s comprehensive global experience will be vital in development of low-cost housing credit scoring and income estimation models for the existing as well as new-to-bank customers utilizing alternative data sources. We are excited to be working with PBA to provide the banks with tools for quick and accurate risk decision making and working towards a more financially inclusive Pakistan.”
Mr. Samuel White, Regional Director, Creditinfo, commented on the partnership: “Our unique global experience will be complemented by the consortium partners’ local market knowledge to develop a robust credit risk and affordability solution in Pakistan. The project will provide PBA members with the required tools to make accurate risk decisions on underserved segments of the population, which is fundamental to increasing access to housing finance. Creditinfo is excited to work with the PBA to support the expansion of financial inclusion in Pakistan and help drive economic activity in the region”.
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About Creditinfo
Established in 1997 and headquartered in London, UK, Creditinfo is a provider of credit information and risk management solutions worldwide. As one of the fastest growing companies in its field, Creditinfo facilitates access to finance, through intelligent information, software and analytics solutions.
With more than 30 credit bureaus running today, Creditinfo has the largest global presence in the field of credit risk management, with a significantly greater footprint than competitors. For decades it has provided business information, risk management and credit bureau solutions to some of the largest, lenders, governments and central banks globally – all with the aim of increasing financial inclusion and generating economic growth by allowing credit access for SMEs and individuals.
For more information, please visit www.creditinfo.com
About TADSDEEQ
TASDEEQ is Pakistan’s first SBP Licensed Credit bureau and a leading credit information services company that leverages data analytics, technology, and industry knowledge to enable financial and non-financial institutions achieve their strategic goals with minimizing their credit risk and help consumers secure their future.
For more information, please visit www.tasdeeq.com
About PACRA
PACRA is, transforming both the rating business and the industry in line with the best practices. Today PACRA has more than 450 opinions outstanding and covering 60+ sectors and sub-sectors of economy.
Since inception, PACRA has over 8,000 rating opinion a testament of PACRA’s expertise, exceptional command, market leadership, and the confidence reposed in its opinions. PACRA rates more than 40% of KSE-100 index companies and 25% of the private sector debt, translating into a rating opinion on every 4th Rupee of debt raised in Pakistan.
The same trust and confidence have also been reposed by foreign regulators in PACRA’s ability and expertise as a CRA. PACRA has entered into a Technical Collaboration Agreements for the formation and operations of CRAs in Bangladesh (National Credit Ratings) and Sri Lanka (Lanka Rating Agency).
For more information, please visit www.pacra.com
About APL
Analytics (branded as Tenx.ai in North America) is a leading Artificial Intelligence, Business Analytics, Big Data Analytics and Data Sciences solutions provider. Having customers in the United States, Middle East and Pakistan, the company has accomplished a proven track record of successfully delivering high impact and complex projects.
For more information, please visit www.analytics.com.pk
About PBA
Pakistan Banks’ Association is a private limited company incorporated under the Companies Act 1913, (now the Companies Act 2017). The principal activity of the Association is to promote, advance and protect rights, privileges and interests of member banks/ financial institutions. Currently, it has 44 members on all Pakistan basis.
For more information, please visit www.pakistanbanks.org.pk
Media Contacts:
Matt Silver
Babel PR for Creditinfo
T: +44 (0)207 199 3977