The ‘drop by drop’ is one of the most worrying phenomena in the financial system. However, it is the only alternative to which Colombians rejected by traditional entities can resort. Companies like Provenir seek to solve this problem by improving the way in which the credit rating is carried out. José Luis Vargas, executive vice president and general manager of fintech in Latin America, spoke about alternative scores and the company’s goals in the region.
What is the focus of Provenir?
Provenir is a fintech linked to risk technology, we support our users to determine who is given credit and who is not. We are a company that has grown a lot in recent years and as part of this stage of global expansion, special emphasis has been placed on Latin America. We are in a very aggressive plan to invest in the region, where we see that there is a very strong growth trend fintech.
What is an alternative score?
To talk about an alternative score, it is important to understand what a traditional data is. There are three types of traditional data: sociodemographic, which is collected in the credit application. The second is obtained from the credit bureaus, only the people with banks are in these centrals. The third type of data is the one that the bank itself has on the customer’s product history, such as deposits, savings accounts, investments and credits.
We consider any data that does not fall into these categories an alternative data, such as the payment of public services, use of the telephone, identity of the client, social networks and a series of information that allows a more comprehensive recognition of the applicant. We have more than 50 traditional and alternative data providers that are already connected to our platform and can be accessed by our clients.
In which countries of the region do you have a presence?
We have a very specific focus on economies where there is accelerated fintech growth. Our focus is on Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Peru, Chile, Central America as a block and the Dominican Republic.
What are your goals in the region?
Our goal in the region is to triple our presence in 2022. We are making very important investments to attract talent and we have been growing a lot. In the case of Colombia, we are in very advanced conversations with three companies. We have a local partner that allows us to be very well received in the financial sector and we are working with two global banks that operate in the country.
How does an alternative score contribute to financial inclusion?
We have helped our clients launch products aimed at the unbanked market. Provenir’s technology allows financial institutions to access different data to evaluate clients with or without a credit history. We believe that there is the future, since in Latin America between 60% and 70% of the population does not have access to credit and there is an intimate relationship between the prosperity of a country and the access to credit of its inhabitants.
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