TransUnion today released findings from a new survey it commissioned with Versta Research about big data and financial analytics among lenders. The survey was designed to assess current analytics capabilities among lenders, and how they use data for competitive leverage in today’s consumer lending marketplace.

“As in previous research we conducted for TransUnion, the challenge of this work lay in the complexity of the topic combined with the audience we needed to reach,” said Joe Hopper, president of Versta Research. “Everyone talks about data and analytics, but it is hard to nail down what those words mean in specific contexts for decision making. The survey needed to tell a simple and direct story about where lenders are excelling and where they are falling short in their efforts to grow and build strong lending portfolios.”

The survey of 309 lenders was conducted in early 2016, and included risk, compliance, lending, finance, marketing, and analytics executives and managers responsible for optimizing safe growth. Key findings include:

• Two-thirds of lenders (66%) say data and analytics are evolving faster than their internal capabilities
• Three-quarters of lenders (73%) say their analytics capabilities (or lack thereof) affect their ability to compete
• Three-quarters of lenders (74%) believe it is difficult to grow their portfolios without increasing risk
• Seven out of ten lenders (70%) wish they had direct, immediate, self-service visibility into their analytics

Findings are highlighted in an interactive infographic about big data and financial analytics among lenders on the TransUnion website, with the full report available for download.