Senior Data Engineer, Abound

Traditional banks are also slowly starting to use Open Banking data for income verification while other emerging firms, like Abound, are using it to support underwriting decisions. The company's technique allows it not to exclude people with limited or poor credit history and, instead, aims at defining a repayment plan that borrowers can realistically sustain over time.

A forward-looking approach is strongly needed in the lending industry, with the main improvement being the consideration in lending decisions of each customer's current circumstances and recent history. The challenge for Abound in the near future is to effectively exploit machine learning, technology and Open Banking Data while differentiating from the rest of the industry with its own customer-centric approach.