10 | Software and Technology Awards 2021 Sep21625 Words by Nova Credit following their well-deserved recognition in the program. Best Credit Reporting Agency – USA ach year, millions of people move to the U.S. on long-term visas yet lack of domestic credit history means these recent arrivals appear only as no-file or thin-file when applying for financial services. Recent immigrants, or “newcomers” as many self-identify, cannot obtain credit cards or loans because of this lack of credit history, which becomes a major barrier to success when arriving in the country. I experienced this first-hand when my family and I immigrated to the U.S. from Russia. We quickly realized how difficult it was to build a financial life in the U.S. without credit history and how a lack of access to financial products stood in the way of settling into our new life. For instance, my family and I lived a full year without a car because we could not obtain auto financing. After a year of saving up, we purchased our first car – a Honda – for $2,000 in cash. Years later in a class project at Stanford, fellow classmates Nicky Goulimis, Loek Janssen and I realized my experience was not unique and that there was major opportunity for technology to address this systemic challenge. We developed a solution that would enable immigrants to share their credit history from their home country with financial service providers here in the U.S., unlocking new opportunities for newcomers and new consumer segment for credit card issuers and lenders that serve them. In 2016, Nova Credit was founded to create a level-playing field for immigrants so they can start their financial journey in the U.S. on an equal footing. As the first and only company that partners with leading credit bureaus around the world to deliver real-time international credit data to lenders in the United States, Nova Credit makes it possible for newcomers to transport their financial identity across borders. This helps them integrate faster and ultimately achieve economic security. At Nova Credit, our mission is to power a fair and inclusive financial system for the world. With an audacious vision for stitching together the world’s credit data into a single network, Nova Credit is driving systemic change in the way immigrants access financial products. We strive to enable the flow of people not just for their economic potential, but because of the value of that movement itself in bringing new perspectives, creativity, community, and innovation. To build this global platform for financial identity, Nova Credit has built a complex three-sided marketplace comprising international credit bureaus, financial service providers, and consumers. Partnering with international credit bureaus with varying reporting protocols and compliance requirements is an long and arduous process. Financial service providers have never had the ability to reach the immigrant segment before and immigrant consumers have traditionally been excluded from financial services. Nova Credit’s core innovation addresses this disconnect through its flagship product Credit Passport®, a report that includes a U.S- equivalent credit score and standardized credit data from its bureau partners around the world. By delivering this data in real time, with a consumer’s consent, Nova Credit enables credit card issuers, lenders, property managers, telecommunications companies and other service providers to instantly serve immigrants faster and more fairly. Nova Credit has also expanded its services to support the broader U.S. population with insufficient credit history, not just those who have recently moved here. To begin, the company has developed an income verification model that leverages bank transaction data to deliver a more accurate and holistic income assessment of the consumer. Existing income verification tools typically only capture primary income sources for a limited set of traditionally employed consumers, resulting in costly, burdensome, manual review processes for many ‘non- traditional’ applicants. Lenders who use Nova Credit’s income verification product can now provide users an opportunity to verify their income by linking their bank account data, theoretically covering anyone who has income deposited in their a bank account. This helps Nova Credit’s lending partners, such as leading personal lender SoFi, to reduce underwriting costs through automation. More importantly, this helps more consumers get approved for financial products by removing time and stress from an otherwise clunky lending process. At a higher level, this represents an exciting expansion of Nova Credit’s work helping those previously excluded from financial system by unlocking a new source of consumer-permissioned data. Founded by immigrants, Nova Credit has a diverse team from around the globe who are making this world beyond borders a reality. “Novans” hail from all over the world, and two out of three employees are either immigrants or children of immigrants. The company’s culture is built on supporting each other’s efforts and recognizing each other’s contributions. Collectively, we are guided by four company values in everything that we do: • Tie your neighbor’s shoes: Play as a team, win as a team! • Chug like a train, soar like a plane: Be a go-getter and always ready to get your hands dirty! • Build bridges, not walls: We believe in supporting the traditionally disadvantaged. • Challenge without ego: Don’t let your ego get in the way of truth. With these values in mind, Nova Credit strives to create a workplace where people can bring their whole selves and find opportunities for growth. We value diversity of opinions, actionable feedback, and constructive debate as we work together to build a fair and inclusive financial for the world. Company: Nova Credit Name: Misha Esipov Email:
[email protected] Web Address: www.novacredit.com Address: 225 Valencia St, San Francisco, CA 94103 Telephone: (844) 423-1345 E