Plend partners with tech firm on debt resolution solution
Tech company Ophelos has partnered with peer-to-peer consumer lender Plend to help customers resolve their debt in an ethical way.
Plend provides affordable loans to people who are struggling to gain access to credit, of which there are approximately 20 million in the UK. The partnership is aimed at giving Plend customers manageable repayment plans if they default on their loans, through Ophelos’ debt resolution platform.
Registrations for early access to the offering are now open.
Plend gained approval from the City regulator to start lending earlier this month, after a length authorisation process.
It uses open banking technology to assess creditworthiness using its own scoring system, which makes decisions on an individual’s transaction history and spending behaviour to tailor a loan for their needs.
Founded in 2020 by Robert Pasco and James Pursaill, Plend offers longer term sustainable loans to borrowers from 10 per cent to 25 per cent APR.
Ophelos uses machine learning technology to simplify and automate the debt resolution process, allowing customers to set up manageable instalments through personalised repayment plans.
Both companies have achieved pending B Corporation status.
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“As a pending B-corporation like ourselves, Ophelos understands the importance of putting people first and managing customer relationships with a degree of empathy,” said Pasco, chief executive officer and co-founder of Plend.
“Debt resolution needs to be accessible for our customers, not an afterthought, which is why Ophelos’ debt resolution technology platform will become a core part of our lending platform.”
Read more: Plend secures micro-finance lending partnership
Last year, Plend bolstered its team with an array of new hires including Crowdcube co-founder Luke Lang as executive chair, RateSetter’s former risk officer Kevin Allen, Sarah Davies as head of compliance and Ash Woolf as head of data analytics.