HSBC UK taps Nova Credit for international consumer credit data
HSBC UK has partnered with consumer credit bureau Nova Credit to allow new credit card applicants to utilise their international credit history.
HSBC UK partners Nova Credit
The bank will use Nova Credit’s Nova Passport technology as part of its international credit decisioning for online credit card applications, allowing customers to draw on credit history from 12 different countries.
These countries include Australia, Brazil, Canada, Dominican Republic, India, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, the Philippines, Spain, Switzerland and the United States.
Launched in the UK at the beginning of this year after receiving approval from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), Nova Passport allows financial institutions to access international consumer data via API connections with international credit bureaus.
HSBC UK is now the second of HSBC’s regional entities to have implemented the solution after HSBC Singapore, and comes after the bank’s venture capital arm invested $10 million in Nova Capital’s Series B round in September 2022.
Describing access to credit as “an important step” in moving to a new country, Madhu Kejriwal, head of unsecured lending at HSBC UK, says migrants face “real and unique hurdles” in trying to receive the services they need, which he attributes to “lack of local credit history”, “juggling finances between locations” and “understanding tax considerations”.
Collin Galster, Nova Credit’s head of international, says his company’s solution is seeing “growing recognition” among businesses that are using it to “build more compelling propositions and more valuable customer relationships”.
