GDS Link has been recognized by CIOReview Magazine as the recipient of “Top 50 Fintech Solution Companies - 2018,” based on our proprietary methodology, reflecting its position in the industry. This profile has been developed by the CIOReview research and editorial team based on insights from an interview with Paul Greenwood, CEO.

GDS Link
Catalyst for New Age Lending

Paul Greenwood, CEO

With Online Lending, lenders have made credit available virtually via the click of a button. To improve the applicant experience, lenders must strive to resolve operational bottlenecks that can impact the amount of time it takes to fully decision the application and transfer funds to approved applicants. Physical verification of an applicant’s details by reviewing collected information or placing phone calls to the applicant or references are a few of the operational setbacks as they are time-consuming, uneconomical and subject to human error. Paul Greenwood, with more than two decades of experience in the credit risk management industry, set out to address these challenges and enhance the online lending process. He co-founded GDS Link to reduce the time taken by a lender to decision an applicant thereby reducing a lender’s time to fund. GDS Link offers an automation, workflow and analytics platform, DataView360® that fully supports a lender’s process for evaluating consumer or business loan applications. Additionally, once the applicant becomes a customer, DataView360 can be further leveraged by the lender throughout the full credit lifecycle of the customer including account monitoring and collections. “Through our platform, marketplace lenders can reduce time-to-market, harness machine learning capability, and apply sophisticated credit models before lending,” states Greenwood, CEO, GDS Link.

DataView360 is a data-neutral and platform-independent data aggregation, scoring and decisioning solution that is easily customized to support a lender’s processes for mitigating potential fraud, assessing an applicant’s ability to pay and determining the size and terms of the loan they can manage with the ability to optimize this based on the lender’s constraints. The modular design of DataView360 saves the client from overhauling their existing infrastructure and enables them to analyze the loan applications and disburse the loan. Through its Data Engine, Decision Engine, and CASECenter modules, lenders can make data-driven lending decisions and execute the end-to-end lending process - from originations to collections.

Harnessing the Power of Data

As data plays a crucial role in building a profile of loan applicants, GDS Link has built Data Engine, a module of DataView360 that plays a pivotal role in transforming the conventional lending process into a data-driven activity.

Through our platform, marketplace lenders can reduce time-to-market, harness machine learning capability, and apply sophisticated credit models before lending

The module enables the lenders to gain clear information about loan applicant by connecting them to application front-ends, marketing websites, loan management platforms, internal customer databases and third-party data bureaus. It harnesses consumer, commercial, checking/debt, alternative, ID verification/fraud mitigation, assets and financial data from 50 plus credit bureaus and sources in the U.S, the U.K., and Canada. By utilizing information from Experian PLC Consumer, Equifax Inc. Consumer, Dun & Bradstreet, NADA, Trans Union of Canada, Inc., LendProtect UK Ltd., and numerous others, clients can easily build the profile of loan applicant.

Lenders can mitigate frauds, verify identities and incomes; and perform credit data analysis. Their decision-making process is underpinned by the graphical user interface (GUI) that simplifies information analysis as it presents logic of the calculation and insights in an intelligible format. Based on the pre-defined characteristics, borrowers can be categorized and analyzed for the underlying credit risks. Furthermore, lenders can implement instructions in logical sequences and flows that are backed by analysis.

Enriched with data, lenders can improve the decision-making process with DataView360’s Decision Engine. Using its adaptive control, lenders’ business units can manage the credit policy from start to finish. With complete control over defining credit policy, the online lenders can refine their offering. For instance, if a person applies for $10,000 loan, but qualifies for $15,000, the lender can perform upselling. Also, if the borrower applies for higher loan amount but fails to qualify then the lender can change the offer. The credit policy can include traditional credit models like linear regression and sophisticated models like machine learning gradient boost. By importing readily available CECL-compliant probability of default (PD), Loss Given Default (LGD), and Exposure at Default (EAD) models, the lending and banking organizations can accelerate the lending process. Lenders can also manage and optimize pricing, loan amount and the policy rules. For instance, if a lender wants to create a new credit card offering with different pricing mechanism they can create by defining and managing the policy rules.

Decision Engine helps lenders to implement scorecards, discern the risk metrics and subsequently implement risk strategies.

Through DataView360’s CASECenter, lenders can process loan applications and streamline their work queues. A flag can be raised if an application fails on predetermined parameters, and if it is assigned ‘pending’ status, then it will be queued for re-processing. The underwriter can investigate the reasons for application rejection and resolve the issues. The module can underpin POS, web processing, call and message centers besides customizable and templated application processing solutions. Lenders can avail the solution either as an on-demand web-based system incorporating Software-as-a- Service (SaaS) best practices or as a license.

Redefining the Lending Process

As GDS Link’s solution offers analytical insights into applicant’s income, their repayment history, and delivers the critical information to financial institutions, they have turned the corners for numerous clients. For instance, an online lender, which was a startup company, sought a solution to inject efficiency into their existing lending process. With a spate of enhancement in the client’s system, GDS Link enabled the client to reduce the cost of loan application processing and prune expenditure at various touch points. GDS Link’s platform not only made lending practices effectual but also empowered the client to improve the bottom line, increase the market share, and break into one of the top five lenders in the U.S.

In its endeavor to empower clients in making sound credit decisions, reducing debt and losses, GDS Link offers credit risk analytics and consulting. The company harnesses 20 years of experience and helps clients to prevent fraud or defaults at any stage of lending.

GDS Link has also been enabling its client to transform their existing process and preparing them to comply with the new regulations. For instance, Open Banking regulations are being introduced in Europe in 2018 and the company’s solutions have already been empowering the clients to generate reports that meet the regulatory requirements. The company has started collaborating with banks in Europe and been helping them to implement CECL, IRFS 9 regulations using the decision engine component. With GDS Link’s comprehensive platform, clients can mitigate the compliance risks like raised by Basel-III norms that mandate lenders to understand what the expected credit losses when originating the new loan.

“We continue to see the expansion of use in machine learning module. As more lenders are acquiring machine learning capabilities, GDS Link perceives this as a growth opportunity,” says Greenwood. With existing and new lenders getting acquainted with the power of credit models with machine learning in detection, ID verification, and credit decisioning, GDS Link will continue to build new machine learning models that can be applied to the vast financial services arena.

GDS Link

GDS Link Marketing Services Launches ePrescreen365: A Ground-Breaking Widget for Streamlined Loan Offers

Tuesday, August 08, 2023

GDS Link Marketing Services, a pioneer in marketing solutions for financial services, proudly announces the launch of ePrescreen365, a state-of-the-art widget set to transform how financial institutions present prescreened online loan offers. Designed to meet the escalating demand for online access, ePrescreen365 provides customers/members a frictionless process to view their prequalified loan offers.

ePrescreen365 facilitates a multi-loan type, perpetual online loan program catering to various loan categories such as Auto, Mortgage, Home Equity, Credit Card, Personal Loan, and Student Loan. This user-friendly widget grant website visitors effortless access to their prequalified loan offers with minimal data capture. By delivering a consistent and seamless customer experience, ePrescreen365 eliminates the need for integration, ensuring that users never have to leave the financial institution’s website.

The key benefits of ePrescreen365 include:

• Meeting Consumer Demand for Online Access: With a fast and straightforward two-factor authentication (2FA) process, ePrescreen365 ensures data security while catering to the increasing consumer demand for online access.

• Enhanced Customer Experience: By eliminating the need for integration, ePrescreen365 provides a seamless digital journey. Users access offers without being redirected to external platforms, enabling a frictionless, personalized experience.

• Lead Generation and Maximizing Loan Opportunities: Through daily “visitor” reports, financial institutions can effectively identify and follow up on leads, maximizing loan opportunities and nurturing customer relationships.

ePrescreen365 boasts a responsive design that offers an optimal user experience across multiple devices. Its mobile-friendly interface allows customers/members to seamlessly provide their information, including their name and date of birth, through a simple and intuitive process. The widget presents up to six loan programs tailored to each user’s prequalified offers.

Implementing ePrescreen365 is a simple and seamless process. Begin by selecting the URL location for the widget and creating a landing page that matches your website’s branding. From there, GDS Link Marketing Services provides the embed code that effortlessly integrates the ePrescreen365 widget into the landing page. Once the code is published, financial institutions can start directing traffic to the landing page, allowing customers or members to instantly access their prequalified loan offers.

To maximize the outreach and impact of ePrescreen365, financial institutions can leverage various marketing channels, including their website, email announcements, newsletters, text messages, mobile push notifications, billing statements, and direct mail campaigns. By adopting this multi-channel approach, financial institutions can proactively engage with their customers/members and enhance their online loan offer experience.

ePrescreen365 offers three levels of tracking and reporting:

• App Starts – tracks customers/members who submit the prescreen form

• Offers – follows customers/members who successfully authenticate

• Selected – tracks customers/members who select at least one loan offer

This comprehensive reporting system provides valuable insights to financial institutions, enabling them to a level of user engagement analysis, allowing them to optimize their marketing strategies.

ePrescreen365 offers enhanced integration capabilities, allowing seamless integration into existing or legacy infrastructure. ePrescreen365 offers various integration options for financial institutions, such as simple redirects, pre-filling of customer/member information, behind-the-scenes data posting, and API integration with LOS or other providers (subject to permissions). This level of integration empowers financial institutions to streamline their processes and provide a seamless experience for customers/members.

“We are thrilled to introduce ePrescreen365, and believe it is a true game-changer,” said Paul Greenwood, CEO / President at GDS Link. “With ePrescreen365, integrating a seamless, convenient, and personalized loan offer experience to customers has never been easier for lenders. We are confident ePrescreen365 can and will revolutionize the loan offer process for our clients.”

GDS Link Introduces Lisa Bonalle as CEO, Continuing its Path of Innovation and Growth

Friday, September 15, 2023

DALLAS,-- GDS Link, a global leader in credit risk solutions and data analytics, is pleased to announce the appointment of Lisa Bonalle as its new CEO. She succeeds company co-founder and former President, Paul Greenwood, who will continue his role as a member of the board. Co-Founder, Yves Duhoux, will continue to serve as Chief Technology Officer.

Bonalle most recently served as president of Verisk Financial Group a division of Verisk Analytics, a leading data analytics and risk assessment firm. Bonalle's collaborative approach and skilled direction yielded substantial business growth and innovation within the marketplace. Under her visionary leadership, Verisk Financial orchestrated the successful acquisition of multiple organizations, bolstering its prominence within the financial services sector. This strategic trajectory eventually led to the group's acquisition by TransUnion in April 2022. Leveraging over 30 years within payments, credit cards, and consumer banking, Bonalle possesses a wealth of expertise in corporate strategy and product development. "I am thrilled to become a part of the GDS Link team and lead the company into its next phase of growth." said Bonalle. "GDS Link has a remarkable reputation for delivering innovative and impactful real-time decisioning solutions, and I look forward to working with our talented team to build on that legacy."

Greenwood, shared his optimism about the company's future under Bonalle's leadership, stating, "It has been an incredible journey leading GDS Link alongside my fellow co-founders. I am confident that Lisa's strategic vision and extensive experience will drive GDS Link to new heights, and I am excited to support her in my new role as Executive Chairman."

Reflecting on the transition, board member Brendan Reidy remarked, "We are immensely grateful for Paul's dedication and hard work in guiding GDS Link to its current standing. His leadership has been invaluable. At the same time, we are thrilled to welcome Lisa as the new CEO. Her strategic insights and proven leadership make her the ideal candidate to lead GDS Link into the future."

Top 50 Fintech Solution Companies - 2018

Company
GDS Link

Management
Paul Greenwood, CEO

Description
Provider of customer-centric risk management and process automation technology that simplifies and accelerates lending process

GDS Link Catalyst for New Age Lending