MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Juvo, Mastercard to Promote Alternative Credit Scoring Platform to Microfinance Institutions, Banks in Latin America, Caribbean

Juvo, a US-based financial technology (fintech) startup that uses transaction data analysis to create credit profiles for individuals in emerging markets, recently partnered with Mastercard to distribute its Financial Identity as a Service (FiDaaS) platform to financial services providers in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). For people without traditional credit histories, the FiDaaS platform uses “alternative transaction data [and…] machine learning tools” to evaluate their likelihood of repaying loans.

“Financial institutions across LAC face a dilemma: Consumers can’t demonstrate their creditworthiness to gain access to credit. Without access to credit, however, consumers can’t establish creditworthiness,” said Juvo CEO Steve Polsky. “Using FiDaaS, financial institutions can rapidly and dramatically expand the addressable market for their services while minimizing risk.”

Founded in 2014, Juvo has 70 employees. It has subscribers in 25 countries, 1 million of whom are active per day as of 2020. Over five rounds of funding, Juvo has raised USD 59.3 million from 28 investors. Among these, its lead investors are New Enterprise Associates, Samsung NEXT and Wing Venture Capital.

Headquartered in the state of New York, Mastercard is a payments and technology company connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants and governments in approximately 210 countries and territories. As of October 2020, Mastercard reported net quarterly income of USD 1.5 billion on total assets of USD 32 billion.

By Kate Finster, Research Associate

Sources and Additional Resources

Financial IT article on Juvo and Mastercard
https://financialit.net/news/payments/mastercard-juvo-provide-financial-services-underbanked-consumers-latin-america

Juvo homepage
https://www.juvo.com

Mastercard homepage
https://www.mastercard.us

Mastercard October 2020 quarterly report
https://investor.mastercard.com/financials-and-sec-filings/quarterly-results/default.aspx

Mastercard 2019 annual report
https://investor.mastercard.com/financials-and-sec-filings/annual-reports-and-proxy/default.aspx

Previous MicroCapital article on Juvo
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-juvo-raises-40m-provide-microloans-mobile-airtime-credit-eastern-europe-latin-america-southeast-asia/

Previous MicroCapital article on Mastercard
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-malaysia-digital-economy-corporation-mdec-mastercard-partner-on-e-money-payment-cards-islamic-fintech-mentoring-technology-training-for-girls/

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