• Credit bureau, business information, and credit risk specialist CRIF has inked a strategic partnership with open banking API company Ozone API.
• The collaboration is designed to hep financial institutions enhance data-driven decision-making, streamline operations, and share data safely.
• CRIF made its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope in 2014.

A newly announced strategic partnership between CRIF and open banking API solution provider Ozone API will help financial institutions securely share their data and create new financial solutions that enhance data-driven decision-making, streamline operations, and improve customer satisfaction.

“By partnering with Ozone API, we are combining our strengths to create a seamless and efficient banking experience for our clients,” CRIF Digital Platform Business Development & Ecosystem Strategy Senior Director Andrea Martellone said. “This collaboration aligns perfectly with our mission to innovate and provide advanced solutions that drive growth in the financial sector.”

The partnership combines CRIF’s credit information and decision support systems with Ozone API’s open banking experience and secure, standards-compliant technology. Not only will the partnership assist financial institutions in meeting evolving needs, CRIF and Ozone API will also enable them to provide more personalized and efficient banking services to their customers now.

“This is an exciting partnership for Ozone API, as this will drive financial inclusion by providing the right tools to financial institutions to allow their customers to make more informed decisions about their financial wellbeing and get access to a wider range of financial services,” Ozone API Global Partnership Lead James Bushby said.

Headquartered in the U.K., Ozone API was founded in 2017. The open banking API platform helps banks and financial institutions take advantage of the opportunities of open banking and open finance with its compliant, open API technology. Ozone API’s technology supports all international standards and empowers financial institutions to create real commercial value and monetize open finance globally. The company began 2024 securing $11.3 million (£8.5 million) in Series A funding in a round led by Gresham House Ventures.

CRIF introduced itself to Finovate audiences in 2014 as part of our FinovateEurope conference. The company provides credit information services for business and marketing; business intelligence services, including credit ratings and data analysis; and digital solutions to support business development and open banking. Founded in 1988 and headquartered in Bologna, Italy, CRIF today serves more than 10,000 financial institutions, more than 90,000 business clients, and more than one million consumers. The company operates in 39 countries across four continents.

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• CRIF and Know Your Customer will help Ping An OneConnect (Hong Kong) Limited enhance digital onboarding for its SME customers.
• CRIF and Know Your Customer have collaborated since forging a global commercial partnership in 2021.
• Headquartered in Bologna, Italy, CRIF made its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope in 2014.

Banking credit information provider CRIF and regtech Know Your Customer have partnered to help Ping An OneConnect Bank (Hong Kong) Limited (“PAOB”) improve the digital onboarding process for its SME customers.

CRIF and Know Your Customer have developed a new system that uses real-time registry connections to automatically retrieve documents and map shareholders. The solution provides a centralized place to integrate data from multiple official sources which enables PAOB to streamline the onboarding process for its clients. In addition to leveraging automation to lower costs and reduce the amount of manual labor involved, the new offering supports on-going monitoring requirements, as well. Both CRIF and Know Your Customer offer a wide range of compliance solutions: CRIF provides a portfolio of business data and intelligence, including credit and ESG data. Know Your Customer provides real-time registry connections, Ultimate Beneficial Owner mapping across borders, and modular workflow capabilities.

Ivan Chow, Head of Strategy & Partnerships at PAOB highlighted the challenges facing regional SMEs in the immediate, post-COVID economic environment. Chow noted that the re-opening of places like Hong Kong is not only likely to feature increased business activity, but also increased demand for operating capital financing. “The partnership with CRIF and Know Your Customer will further enhance our customer-centric experience to the SME customers,” Chow said.

The partnership between CRIF and Know Your Customer extends back to 2021. The two companies announced a global commercial partnership in August of that year to help financial institutions pursue their digital transformation objectives. The alliance will combine CRIF’s KYC data offering with Know Your Customer’s platform to facilitate digital corporate onboarding for financial institutions. The agreement also featured a strategic financial investment in Know Your Customer. The amount of the investment was not disclosed. The company said the capital will help it further develop the AI and automation features of its technology.

Founded in 1988, CRIF is headquartered in Bologna, Italy. The company operates in more than 40 countries and includes more than 10,000 financial institutions and 600+ insurance companies among its customers. CRIF made its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope in 2014.

Photo by Jimmy Chan

Late last month, credit management solutions provider CRIF announced plans to team up with Swoop Funding, a business funding and savings platform. CRIF anticipates the partnership will help the U.K.’s community of 5.9 million SMEs access more funding and ultimately grow.

Swoop will leverage CRIF’s Credit Passport business credit scoring technology that provides real time credit scores for SMEs. This tool will benefit both Swoop and the small businesses themselves. Swoop will help match businesses with funding and savings products. For businesses with lower credit scores, this will help them potentially find previously unavailable sources for working capital. The partnership will also offer SMEs insights into their businesses’ financial performance and viability, and help them see how lenders view them.

“We designed Credit Passport to remove friction in the lending decisioning process and help SMEs get the right funding for them, when they need it, as well as to help educate businesses so they can build the most financially healthy and resilient companies,” said CRIF Realtime Chief Product Officer Glen Keller. “CRIF’s partnership with Swoop puts us at the heart of the U.K.’s SMEs with useful information at a time when they need it the most and will really make a difference to the market.”

CRIF’s Credit Passport helps bridge the gap between the financial industry and business owners. The tool leverages open banking to offer lenders a view into SME’s credit quality and will give Swoop’s SME clients insight into their own business credit score.

Swoop was founded in 2018. The company’s business funding and savings platform helps SMEs discover the right funding solution– ranging from loans to equity to grants– to fit their need. Swoop also has a business financial management (BFM) spin, and offers tools to help businesses identify savings opportunities. The company has matched its more than 79,000 customers with over $187 million in funding.

Italy-based CRIF was founded in 1988 and has more than 5,500 employees working across 70+ subsidiary companies on four continents. The firm counts 10,500+ financial institutions, 600 insurance companies, and 82,000 businesses as clients. In all, one million consumers in 50 countries use CRIF’s services. In 2020, CRIF acquired PFM company Strands to complement its customer acquisition, portfolio management, and credit collection tools. Last year, CRIF participated as an investor in nine fintech funding rounds.

Photo by Ketut Subiyanto from Pexels