Istanbul, Turkey, 14 April 2015– DenizBank in Turkey – part of the Sberbank group – is the first client in the Balkans, Turkey & Middle East to sign up to an exciting new initiative from Experian, delivered in partnership with the leading provider of psychometric testing for the credit and risk sector, VisualDNA. The new initiative will enable DenizBank to assess its thin-file customers with a psychometric quiz besides traditional credit check and scoring techniques.
VisualDNA's pioneering techniques use image based quizzes that provide an insight on customer behavior and an alternative indication of a person's creditworthiness and suitability for financial products where little formal credit history exists.
Evidence shows that this unique approach can deliver improved acceptance rates for credit and a reduction in default rates[1]. Individuals choose themselves if they wish to take the test and the quiz does not require an individual to submit their personal data.
Cenker Ozhelvaci, Market President and General Manager for Experian in the Balkans, Turkey & Middle East commented: "We are delighted that an organisation that has been awarded the title of ‘Most Innovative Bank of the Year’ by the US-based Bank Administration Institute and American Bankers Association has continued as such by being the first in our region to incorporate this new initiative into their operations. Our partnership with VisualDNA means we can help DenizBank safely reach the underbanked and underserved population in Turkey by providing valuable insights regarding their credibility."
Clare McCaffery, Managing Director Credit & Risk, VisualDNA said “Enabling wider access to financial services, helping the underbanked gain access to lending services, and providing lenders a way of broadening their customer relationships with those they serve is a big part of what drives VisualDNA. That’s why we’re particularly excited to be rolling out in Turkey and looking forward to working with DenizBank and Experian.”
The proof of concept is currently being delivered at DenizBank and the service is scheduled to be available to all DenizBank's customers from October.
ENDS
Contact for Experian
Çiğdem Gündoğan, Client Engagement Manager, EMEA
+90 212 344 15 15
cigdem.gundogan@experian.com
Contact for VisualDNA
Alex Simmons, Smithfield Consultants
+44 207 903 0669
asimmons@smithfieldgroup.com/ visualdna@smithfieldgroup.com
About DenizBank
DenizBank was established in 1938 as a state economic enterprise aimed at funding of the developing Turkish maritime sector. In the early 1997, DenizBank was acquired by the Zorlu Holding in the form of banking license from the Privatization Administration and in October 2006, a leading European financial group, Dexia incorporated it to its structure. For 6 years, DenizBank operated in Dexia’s main shareholding and since 28 September 2012, continues providing services under the umbrella of Russia’s largest bank, Sberbank of Russia. DenizBank has become one of the remarkable banks of Turkey in a short period of time. DenizBank Financial Services Group was established in 2003 in order to create a “financial supermarket” accumulating various financial services under one roof. There are 758 branches within DenizBank Financial Services Group operating in 81 provinces of Turkey and abroad employing close to 15 thousand people. DenizBank Financial Services Group consists of DenizBank, seven domestic, three international financial subsidiaries, five domestic non-financial subsidiaries, and a branch in Bahrain. Deniz Investment Securities, Ekspres Securities, Deniz Real Estate Investment Trust, DenizPortfolio Management, DenizLeasing, DenizFactoring, Destek Asset Management Company, Intertech, Deniz Kültür, Deniz Card Payment Systems, Açık Deniz Radio – TV and Bantaş are the group’s domestic subsidiaries while Eurodeniz, DenizBank AG and DenizBank Moscow are its international subsidiaries. The bank's official websites are:
http://www.denizbank.com , http://www.facebook.com/DenizBank , http://twitter.com/DenizBank
About Sberbank
Sberbank is the largest bank of Russia that holds about the third of total Russian banking assets. The Central Bank of the Russian Federation is the major shareholder of Sberbank owning 50% plus one voting share. Other shares are held by more than 244,000 individuals and legal entities. The Bank has the largest distribution network in Russia with about 17 000 branches as well as strong international presence that extended beyond the CIS region, - Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Belarus, - to eight countries in Central and Eastern Europe via Sberbank Europe AG, and Turkey via DenizBank. Sberbank has representative offices in Germany and China, a branch in India and operations in Switzerland via Sberbank (Switzerland) AG. Sberbank also provides investment banking, financial advisory services, and operations on global markets via Sberbank CIB. Sberbank has the General Banking License issued by the Bank of Russia – No. 1481. The bank's official websites are:
http://www.sberbank.ru , http://www.sberbank.com
About Experian
We are the leading global information services company, providing data and analytical tools to our clients around the world. We help businesses to manage credit risk, prevent fraud, target marketing offers and automate decision making. We also help people to check their credit report and credit score, and protect against identity theft. In 2014, we were named by Forbes magazine as one of the ‘World’s Most Innovative Companies’.
We employ approximately 16,000 people in 39 countries and our corporate headquarters are in Dublin, Ireland, with operational headquarters in Nottingham, UK; California, US; and São Paulo, Brazil.
Experian plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (EXPN) and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Total revenue for the year ended March 31, 2014, was US$4.8 billion.
To find out more about our company, please visit http://www.experianplc.com or watch our documentary, ‘Inside Experian’.
About VisualDNA
VisualDNA is an independent technology company based in Shoreditch, London.
We want to help people be valued for who they really are. We do this by combining psychological testing with big data analysis. For ordinary people, this means we can help them understand themselves better. For businesses, it means we can help them understand their customers better.
Our vision is to use the technological tools at humanity’s disposal to understand each other more fully and ultimately to build a better world. Across our markets we are enabling wider access to financial services, helping the unbanked gain access to lending services, and providing lenders a way of broadening their customer relationships with those they serve. We aim to make a social impact through our work which is why one of our aims is to help 30m unbanked people in developing markets get access to credit by 2017. For more information visit http://www.visualdna.com
[1]Data based on over 100,000 credit scores generated through VisualDNA technology in conjunction with lenders globally showed an increase in acceptance rates and a reduction in defaults.