We are a leading global information services company with significant expertise in data and analytics. We help individuals to take control of their finances and to save money. We help businesses to lend responsibly and appropriately and to minimise the risk of fraud. We support people and organisations to access information faster and to make precise decisions which in turn helps them further their goals.
Helping our customers
Our data assets are extensive, and we combine data with sophisticated analytics to truly harness its power. We invest continuously to enrich and enhance the quality and coverage of our data assets, and we place a significant emphasis on innovating to develop new propositions to help our customers. We also invest to grow our consumer membership base and to extend the services our members can access. In a dynamic operating environment, this gives us the opportunity to grow our business by addressing new requirements and emerging trends. We have clients across many segments and geographies, and we grow by extending the services we provide to our existing clients, by adding new customers and by growing our consumer membership base.
Experian’s roots lie in providing credit information and assessing lending risks. This is still the foundation of our business but we also do much more – for lenders, individuals, telecommunications companies, governments, the automotive sector, US healthcare providers and many other industries. This gives rise to many opportunities to expand, while also providing great resilience, helping us to withstand adverse external events, such as the global pandemic.
A deep understanding of our markets
We regularly map the markets which are directly addressable by Experian and our assessment is that they are material in scope. They are also expanding rapidly, driven by the growing adoption of digital services, the shift towards automated services, the need for our customers to identify and authenticate their counterparties and the desire by individuals to access financial services in a digital world. All of these activities rely on data and the type of sophisticated analytics that we provide. To harness these opportunities, we concentrate our investment into five strategic focus areas, these are discussed in more detail in Our strategy section on page 35. We have developed detailed plans to pursue these opportunities.
We are a responsible business
ESG is core to how we run our business. We transform lives by improving access to credit and empowering individuals to understand their finances. This is integral to our business and to the core products that we offer. We add to this through well-defined social innovation programmes and through community investments. In this way we contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals related to improving access to credit and financial services.
We are deeply aware of our responsibility to treat data – and those it belongs to – with care and respect. Data security is of the utmost focus and we implement the highest standards of security controls. We are also committed to becoming carbon neutral in our own operations by 2030¹ and have set science-based targets to achieve this.
Strong foundations
Financially we are well positioned. Our balance sheet is strong and we have ample funding liquidity. We also have a proven track record of converting operating profit to cash. This allows us to focus on our priority investment areas by investing organically and pursuing acquisition opportunities while also balancing the returns we provide to shareholders.
We are a leader in global information services with strong positions in growing markets
Market leader
We hold the number one or two positions in our largest markets – the USA, Brazil and the UK.
Diversified portfolio
Our businesses cross different sectors and regions, operating in 43 countries.
Scalable business model
Allows us to grow revenues quickly at low incremental cost.
Significant synergies
Our operations combine data sources, integrate analytics and use technology to offer differentiated propositions.
Secure opportunities
We continually invest across specific addressable markets.
A strong basis for future growth
Created by combining these five strengths.
Our strong foundations support
our growth prospects
Market-leading data
Unrivalled in its scale, quality and integrity. Worldwide we hold and manage the credit history and repayment data of 1.4 billion people and 191 million businesses.
A 'people first' culture
Our people are smart, curious and experts in their fields. We invest to support a positive, collaborative, diverse, equitable and inclusive culture where performance is rewarded and employee development is encouraged.
Harnessing innovation
We have a culture of innovation and continually invest in new product and solution development to address emerging opportunities.
Ongoing investment in technology
Technology is how we maintain and extend our competitive advantage. It is critical to the way we ingest, store and secure data, as well as to the way we develop and deliver our products. We also use technology to enhance our own processes to improve productivity and reduce costs.
We place a strong emphasis on Environmental, Social and Governance
Transforming financial lives
We help people take control of their financial health – through our core offering, social innovation products and community investment.
Safeguarding futures
We protect our customers and their families from identity theft and fraud.
Providing access to credit
We are introducing innovative ways for those who lack basic financial services to gain access to credit, for example through use of alternative data sources and financial education programmes.
A responsible business
We help to protect the environment and manage the risks of climate change. We have worked to reduce our carbon footprint year-on-year and are committed to being carbon neutral in our own operations by 2030.
An inclusive organisation
We are committed to being a diverse, equitable and inclusive organisation, at all levels and across all regions. We have established detailed targets to achieve this, as set out in the ESG section of this report.
We remain financially
well positioned
Positive organic growth
We have averaged 6% annual organic revenue growth¹ since we became an independent listed company in 2006, sustaining positive organic growth through all macroeconomic conditions. The diversity of our portfolio and our ability to adapt have helped us to sustain growth even when the external macroeconomic environment has been challenging, for example during the 2007/2008 global financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic. More detail is available in the Financial review section of this report.
Highly recurring revenue
Many of our products and solutions are mission critical and an integral part of our clients’ operating processes.
Highly cash-generative, low capital intensity business
Our Benchmark EBIT to Benchmark operating cash flow conversion rate¹ has averaged 99% since 2006.
Best use of the cash
We balance the need for organic investment in innovation and acquisitions with returns to shareholders, through dividends and share repurchases.