In a country with more than 68 million people in default, equivalent to a third of the total population, Serasa is holding the biggest debt negotiation event in the history of Brazil. Considered an important part of the credit calendar in the country, especially for defaulters who in Brazil form a universe equivalent to the total population of the United Kingdom or France, the Feirão Serasa Limpa Nome (Clean Name Fair in English) is consolidated as one of the main events in Brazil. What is Feirão Limpa Nome? Feirão Limpa Nome is an event held annually by Serasa and is part of the actions of the largest online debt marketplace in Brazil, Serasa Limpa Nome. The marketplace is a free service that connects more than 200 companies in Brazil with more than 70 million consumers who seek to negotiate their debts in a simple and fast way, without having to leave home and with special conditions (up to 90%), such as discounts and installments. Last year, Serasa Limpa Nome brokered more than 32 million deals, an average of 88,000 per day, 61 per minute. In November, Serasa Limpa Nome promoted the Debt Fair, an online event with discounts of up to 99%. It’s like a “Black Friday” for debts. It also had, for 5 days, a physical event with tents in the main Brazilian cities to help non digitalized people pay their debts. As Experian's Chief Financial Officer Lloyd Pitchford put it: "Limpa Nome is there to help people resolve historic debts, and it’s so humbling to see when we hold our credit fairs, the hundreds and hundreds of thousands of people come out to meet with Experian to try and resolve those debts in a way that’s supportable for them but also meets the needs of their creditors." The records and innovations of the 2022 edition With negotiations through Serasa's digital channels taking place in November December , the 28th edition of the event has provided approximately 5.5 million so far. The goal is to achieve 7 million deals by the end of the event, thus closing the largest of all editions ever held. The goal is to surpass the 2021 Fair, which granted more than BRL 10 billion in discounts, enabled 5.8 million deals and benefited 4 million people. The numbers of the Feirão 2022 will be record-setting. We had a record number of participating companies – 267 – including banks, securitization companies (companies that buy debts), finance companies, retail, telecommunications companies, universities, and others. The number of partner companies are growing even more throughout the event. For the first time, Serasa made it possible to renegotiate basic debts, such as energy and solid waste tax. This year it was still a small offer, but already symbolic for what this debt segment represents in Brazil (27% of the total). The volume of offers available is estimated at more than 250 million, with average discounts of 70%. For the first time, Feirão Limpa Nome allowed payment with Pix, currently the main means of instant electronic payment in the country. Payments with Pix allowed, also for the first time, Serasa to offer the possibility of instantly writing off the negative debt – that is, the indebted person could have their name immediately removed from the credit bureaus, not having to wait longer for up to five business days, as provided by Brazilian legislation. For the first time, we made available the “Extrato Serasa” (Serasa Statement), a document in which consumers can prove that they no longer have debts in the company's register. Volunteers and emotion Feirão Limpa Nome is only possible because Experian had an impressive mobilization of its employees and contractors. In addition to these, there was an army of more than 400 volunteers from all over Experian Brazil, who enlisted for the purpose of contributing to a better country. The numbers were impressive and the final economic results were significant, but the most important are the stories of simple people that mark the days of physical fair. There were thousands of cases where users cried after the negotiation was done. They cried with relief at the end of a sacrifice and the resumption of a healthier economic life. Consumers who benefit from this This was the case, in the last fair, of Vagner da Silva, who managed to resolve a pending issue that had plagued him for 21 years, when his two children were born and he had to resort to overdraft and a bank loan. He left the Feirão Serasa Limpa Nome, in São Paulo, with a sense of relief. “For half my life my family and I suffered from this drama, a real knife to the head,” said Vagner, now 42. “Finally, we are free of this burden, we have a clean name”. On the same occasion, the seamstress Terezinha de Jesus cried after getting a 90% discount and paying off a debt made by her ex-husband, in her document, when buying wheels for her car in the early 2000s. “My family likes the right things and I want, when God calls me, to be free, with my suitcase packed”, she told the main Brazilian News Portal, Grupo Globo's G1, in a report that touched thousands of readers. What’s next We continue our journey to help consuemrs all over the world, and here in Brazil. Feirão Limpa Nome is just one of many programs Experian manages in the countries where it operates. For more information on ways we are working to help consumers, please visit our United for Financial Health page here.
We’re thrilled to announce that Experian North America has been recognized as a Top Workplace by the Orange County Register for the 10th consecutive year, with an additional “Excellence Award” for our work / life flexibility. This honor is a testament to our innovative employee culture, and keeping connected, engaged and energized as a hybrid workforce. This Orange County Register award recognition is based on the results of confidential employee surveys that assess the performance of hundreds of successful companies throughout our community. We recognize that our employees are the driving force behind our decade-long achievement as a Top Workplace. Our talented team is dedicated to both their own growth and pushing us forward, and we’re grateful for all they do to make Experian such a great place to work. Employee collaboration from our hackathons and company-wide product overviews have sparked remarkable innovations, such as Experian Go and Experian Boost. These products are especially helpful to members of diverse backgrounds and low-income households. Our Mental Health First-Aiders program is another example of employees coming together to support each other. Our commitment to creating a supportive, purpose-driven culture is reflected in multiple awards from authoritative sources such as Great Places to Work. Not only was Experian listed among the "Best Workplaces for Parents," we’re also honored to be included on their list of "Best Workplaces for Millennials." Additionally, we’re passionate about giving back to the communities in which we work and live. We take pride in our company’s numerous contributions to organizations focused on the well-being of people from a diverse array of backgrounds. From creating the Experian Volunteer Leadership Network to our financial support of community organizations such as Ascend, National Urban league, HomeFree-USA and the Pathways Forward Initiative, we’re dedicated to helping people in need. We believe all these factors have led to our success as a company and a desirable place for people to build thriving careers. We’re honored that leading organizations like the Orange County Register and Great Places to Work recognize our efforts to make the world a better place. We want to make sure that we continue to innovate; that our products and services are first-best-and-only in their respective industries; and that we take very good care of our constituents.
Home ownership has been found to be one of the greatest drivers of generational wealth, but the dream of owning a home can seem out of reach for millions of Americans. At Experian Mortgage, we believe our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, and leveraging the power of data, analytics and technology creates a better tomorrow for all. Our team is 100% committed to helping expand homeownership opportunities to populations traditionally left out of the market. For me personally, diversity, equity and inclusion – in all regards – is a personal passion. That’s why it’s especially thrilling and humbling to receive the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) 2022 Residential Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Leadership Award in the Market Outreach Strategies Non-lender category. Diversity, equity and inclusion is more than just a program for us. It drives our company’s mission of financial inclusion. We are proud to partner with nonprofit organizations including HomeFree-USA, the Urban Institute, UnidosUS and the National Urban League to break down barriers to homeownership through financial and credit education. Through our United for Financial Health program, we established the Home Preservation Grant to assist Black and African American homeowners at risk of losing their homes due to the negative impact of COVID-19. To date, homeowners in Atlanta, Chicago and the greater Washington, D.C. areas have benefitted. As a member of the MBA, Experian enthusiastically signed the Home for All Pledge, furthering its commitment to be a champion for change in addressing the barriers to sustainable housing for persons and communities of color. Additionally, several members of the Experian Mortgage team participate in the Housing Affordability Convergence in support of MBA’s initiative to facilitate new solutions to the nation’s rental and housing affordability challenges. For Experian Mortgage to be recognized by the MBA for our market outreach efforts is tremendously rewarding. It helps confirm we’re on the right track and we still have more to do. We look forward to providing partnership and support to clients and the industry to join us in our mission of financial inclusion. Click here to learn more about our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.
Today, we stand at the forefront of a digital revolution that is reshaping the financial services industry. And, against this backdrop, financial institutions are at vastly different levels of maturity; the world’s biggest banks are managing large-scale infrastructure migrations and making significant investments in AI while regional banks and credit unions are putting plans in place for modernization strategies, and fintechs are purpose-built and cloud native. To explore this more, I recently had the privilege of attending the annual Reuters NEXT live event in New York City. The event gathers globally recognized leaders across business, finance, technology, and government to tackle some of today’s most pressing issues. On the World Stage, I joined Del Irani, a talented anchor and broadcast journalist, to discuss the future of lending and the pivotal role of data and AI in building a more inclusive financial system. Improving financial access Our discussion highlighted the lack of access to traditional financial systems, and the impact it has on nearly 100 million people in North America alone. Globally, the problem affects over one billion people. These people, who are credit invisible, unscoreable, or have subprime credit scores, are unable to secure everyday financial products that many of us take for granted. What many don’t realize is, this is not a fringe subset of the population. Most of us, myself included, know someone who has faced the challenges of financial exclusion. Everyday Americans, including young people who are just starting out, new immigrants and people from diverse communities, often lack access to mainstream financial products. We discussed how traditional lending has a limited view of a consumer. Like looking through a keyhole, the lender’s understanding of the person in view is often incomplete and obstructed. However, with expanded data, technology, and advanced analytics, there is an opportunity to better understand the whole person, and as a result have a more inclusive financial system. At Experian, we have a unique ability to connect the power of traditional credit with alternative data, bringing a more holistic understanding of consumers and their behaviors. We are dedicated to leveraging our rich history in data and our expertise in technology to create the future of credit and ultimately bring financial power to everyone. The future of lending After spending two days with over 700 industry leaders from around the world, one thing is abundantly clear: much like the early days of the internet, today, we are at the cutting-edge of a technical revolution. Reflecting on my time at Reuters NEXT, I am particularly excited by the collective commitment to drive innovative, and smarter ways of working. We are only beginning to scratch the surface of how data and technology can transform financial services, and Experian is positioned to play a significant role. As we look to the future, I am excited about the ways we will create new opportunities for businesses and consumers alike.
The advertising ecosystem has seen significant transformation over the past few years, with increased privacy regulation, changes in available signals, and the rise of channels like connected TV and retail media. These changes are impacting the way that consumers interact with brands and how brands understand and continue to deliver relevant messages to consumers with precision. Experian has been helping marketers navigate these changes, and as a result, our marketing data and identity solutions underpin much of today’s advertising industry. We’re committed to empowering marketers and agencies to understand and reach their target audiences, across all channels. Today, we are excited to announce our acquisition of Audigent—a leading data and activation platform in the advertising industry. With Audigent’s combination of first-party publisher data, inventory and deep supply-side distribution relationships, publishers, big and small, can empower marketers to better understand their customers, expand the reach of their target audiences and activate those audiences across the most impactful inventory. I am excited to bring together Audigent’s supply-side network as a natural extension to our existing demand-side capabilities. Audigent’s ability to combine inventory with targeted audiences using first-party, third-party and contextual signals provides the best of all worlds, allowing marketers to deliver campaigns centered on consumer choices, preferences, and behaviors. The addition of Audigent further strengthens our strategy to be the premier independent provider of marketing data and identity, ultimately creating more relevant experiences for consumers. To learn more about Experian and Audigent, visit https://www.experian.com/marketing/ and https://audigent.com/.
When it comes to cybercriminals and threat vectors, we need to expect the unexpected. Experian’s 12th annual Data Breach Industry Forecast highlights several potential trends for 2025, with AI playing a central role. This year has already seen more data breaches and impacted consumers than 2023, indicating that global data breaches are not slowing down. Some things to watch out for next year includes the potential for more internal fraud. As companies train employees on AI, there is a growing risk that some will misuse their knowledge for internal theft and sourcing sensitive information. Another trend may be cyberattackers targeting large data centers, with the growth of generative AI introducing power as a new attack vector. It’s reported that a single ChatGPT query uses significantly more electricity than a standard Google search, making data centers and cloud infrastructure vulnerable, especially in countries with varying security standards. We expect AI-related attacks to dominate the headlines next year and investments in cybersecurity will increase to tackle this emerging threat, as hackers leverage AI for phishing, password cracking, malware, and deepfakes. Jim Steven, Head of Crisis and Data Response Services at Experian Global Data Breach Resolution in the UK, anticipates that global data breaches will persist at their current rate next year. He notes that ransomware attacks are likely to become even more sophisticated with the integration of AI. Additionally, Steven predicts that threat actors will escalate their tactics to achieve greater rewards, and the misuse of consumer data to damage reputations will increase in 2025. To access the complimentary report, click here.