08/18/2023
Blog
At TransUnion, financial inclusion is central to our mission of Information for Good®. We recognize some consumers, including those in underbanked and under-resourced communities and developing economies, face challenges when attempting to fully participate in mainstream financial services. As a result, we’re focused on enabling responsible and equitable access to financial services through our strategy to improve our customers’ ability to empower, engage and evaluate.
Empower: Build stronger, more sustainable relationships with consumers by providing resources to enable them to build lifelong financial wellness with a focus on consumer credit education.
Engage: Become known, relevant and trusted with underserved consumers through enriched consumer experiences.
Evaluate: Use trusted and holistic views of underserved consumers for innovative, transparent and inclusive decisioning.
As part of the first lever, we’re committed to driving positive business returns from investing in the financial health of underserved families — which itself can drive better performance and greater customer satisfaction, loyalty and cross-sell opportunities with this consumer segment. We’re also committed to empowering consumers through credit education and partnerships with fintech and nonprofit organizations doing hands-on work in the communities where we live and work.
“At the intersection of TransUnion’s commitment to advance financial inclusion and our brand promise to make trust possible in global commerce, we expand pathways for underserved consumers to achieve greater financial resiliency and wellness,” explained Tracie Anderson, Economic Inclusion Strategy Leader, who recently launched TransUnion’s inaugural Financial Inclusion Forum. This event brought together senior leaders in the financial services and insurance industries to develop strategies for driving sustainable growth by expanding opportunities in underserved markets.
“This achievement affords consumers more opportunities to obtain goods and services that improve their quality of life and, in turn, expands business opportunity,” Tracie continued. “As consumers onramp to pathways towards prosperity, they increase their financial literacy. Therefore, our work with partners like MoCaFi, HomeFree-USA and the NAACP is critical — moving the needle on financial inclusion by providing financial education and credit monitoring resources to underserved consumers.”
One example is our partnership with Mobility Capital Finance (MoCaFi), a fintech platform for economic empowerment. MoCaFi has partnered with TransUnion and FinLocker, a leading next-generation, consumer-permissioned financial fitness platform, to provide The Blueprint app to its underbanked and thin credit-file customers. The app empowers users with a complete view of their financial position including assets, liabilities, net worth and credit profile. Within their locker, users have access to Credit Compass™ by TransUnion to simulate credit building tactics and the Housing Calculators help estimate mortgage affordability, interest rates and local housing values. Users can store essential financial documents like tax returns, financial statements and paystubs in the app for easy sharing with trusted financial advisors and lenders in the MoCaFi partner network.
“MoCaFi's partnership with TransUnion is fantastic, and we’ve really accelerated our impact, particularly around The Blueprint,” remarked Wole Coaxum, CEO, MoCaFi. “TransUnion is bringing companies together to be a part of this conversation, allowing us to challenge each other, learn what has worked and what hasn’t, and develop strategies that we can implement on our own.”
We’re also committed to empowering consumers by advancing homeownership in partnership with HomeFree-USA, a nonprofit specializing in homebuying guidance, foreclosure prevention and homeownership education. We provide our consumer credit dashboard — a tool granting consumers on-demand access to education and guidance to reach their goals — free of charge as part of HomeFree-USA’s credit counseling and education program. In providing free tools to advance client journeys to mortgage approval, we’re supporting and sustaining homeownership for the organization’s clientele, the majority of whom are from the Black community. Learn more about our partnership here.
Another notable example is our partnership with the NAACP, which is focused on credit education for traditionally underserved and underrepresented communities. Our consumer education website with the organization, Connecting Our Financial Futures, reaches people where they are in their credit journey — whether they’re just getting started, maintaining financial health or advancing toward prosperity. Our partnership also serves as a connection point to MoCaFi’s The Blueprint, providing a more complete picture of a consumer’s financial position including assets, liabilities, net worth and credit profile.
“TransUnion provides credit education to consumers directly, and through our ongoing community engagements with strategic nonprofit partners,” explained Samantha Nierman, Director, Social Impact Enterprise Marketing. “Our work with partners like NAACP underscores our holistic commitment to financial inclusion — and our overarching mission of Information for Good.”
Learn how we’re helping consumers reach their goals, bringing financial education to children and more by visiting our website. For more about TransUnion’s commitment to financial inclusion, click here.