CreditLadder cleared by FCA to handle private rental payments

UK firm CreditLadder says it’s the first proptech company in the UK to be approved by the Financial Conduct Authority as a payment institute.

To date CreditLadder has focused on enabling renters to add rent payments to their credit history, boosting their credit scores. As a payment initiation service, or PIS, the firm can now request payments from banks on behalf of tenants to go to a landlord or agent’s account.

Authorisation has also been granted for CreditLadder to act as an approved account information service, or AIS, provider, meaning it can now offer tenants a dashboard detailing rental payments and other financial data.

Sheraz Dar, CreditLadder CEO, said: “Winning FCA approval is a huge step forward for CreditLadder because it significantly widens the range of services we can offer tenants and underlines to them, as well as commercial partners and investors, the integrity of our platform.”

CreditLadder says it’s among 15 UK firms granted registration for both AIS and PIS. The company adds the combination of this nod from the regulator and its focus on helping tenants improve their credit scores could mean significant savings for consumers, helping them ultimately access better deals for mortgages, loans and credit cards, for example.

The company works with credit reference agency Experian and since its launch in 2016 has reported over £30m in rent.

This year, CreditLadder was a final stage winner of the HM Treasury’s Rent Recognition Challenge and was one of 20 companies chosen from nearly 100 applicants to join the HM Treasury-supported Tech Nation programme.