Lenddo Considers Social Data in Credit Assessment for New Credit Card

Lenddo, one of Bank Technology News' top ten fintech companies to watch, announced a new credit card whose application process includes crunching social media data to help determine the creditworthiness of individuals in Colombia with thinner credit files.

The company already makes small loans based on digital friend connections and other data.

The new product, called Social Network credit card, is issued by Scotiabank and is meant to let consumers transact online to, say, buy an iTunes song, and build up their credit files.

Lenddo operates under the theory that people who pay their loans are also likely to be friends (digitally) with people who pay their loans. The company has also found that people who view educational content are likelier to repay their debts, too. In the U.S., a startup called RevolutionCredit is working to tie in behavior data as a predictor of creditworthiness.

The use of alternative data to underwrite loans is subject to regulatory concern in the U.S.