Bloom Credit Launches Consumer-Permissioned Data Service Bloom+ with Inspire Federal Credit Union As Its First Client

Jim Merrill

Bloom Credit, the leading API platform modernizing credit data reporting, furnishing and scoring, today announced the introduction of Bloom+ with Inspire Federal Credit Union as its first client. TransUnion, one of the three major credit bureaus, collaborated with Bloom Credit to be the initial receiver of the data. The white-labeled, no-code API allows banks to offer their customers the ability to report alternative credit scoring data from their primary checking accounts to credit bureaus in order to help build credit profiles.

“Banks and credit unions want to help their customers to build better financial health. If you’re making regular bill payments on time, you should be able to leverage that data to initiate or build your credit profile,” said Christian Widhalm, CEO of Bloom Credit. “We’re pleased to introduce Bloom+ which provides the bridge between a customers’ bill payment history and getting that data, accurately, to the credit bureaus.”

Approximately 45 million Americans are “credit invisible” with little or no credit history and may experience higher borrowing costs because they can’t access mainstream credit rates or products. Lenders, however, are increasingly receptive to using alternative data, such as regular utility payments, as a measure of creditworthiness. 

"Today, more than ever, the communities we serve need access to affordable credit," said Jim Merrill, CEO of Inspire Federal Credit Union. "Bloom Plus gives our members and the communities we serve the critical ability to demonstrate their creditworthiness in new ways."

Bloom+ originates anywhere a bank or credit union wants to engage with their customers, allowing them to connect their primary account and to choose the types of payments they want to build credit with including rent, utilities, and telecommunications. Bloom+ verifies these payments are valid and accurate and furnishes them to the credit bureaus where they end up on the consumer’s core credit file. By serving their customers’ best interests and engendering trust, banks and credit unions can improve deposit retention and increase lending opportunities.

“At TransUnion, we know that consumers want to play a more active role in their financial journeys. The consumer permissioned data reporting that Bloom+ enables, provides a more holistic view into financial obligations millions of consumers meet every month and may not be reflected in traditional credit data. It’s a huge step forward in driving more confident lending and empowering consumers,” said David Goldberg, senior vice president at TransUnion.

The launch of Bloom+ comes on the heels of Bloom Credit being named Best of Show at this year’s FinovateSpring, a high profile fintech event attended by executives in banking, finance and technology and winning the 2024 Data Innovation Award from financial media platform Tearsheet. Bloom Credit also was recently inducted as the newest member of the American Fintech Council, a non-profit devoted to expanding inclusivity and transparency in the nation’s financial system.

For more information about Bloom Credit and their new consumer-permissioned data innovation, please visit www.bloomcredit.io.

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