Equifax acquires DataCrédito

The purchase of the Dominican Republic’s largest credit bureau expands Equifax’s presence in Latin America.

ATLANTA (March 15, 2022) – Equifax continues to expand its international footprint with the acquisition of Data Crédito, the largest credit bureau in the Dominican Republic. By bringing the power of the Equifax Cloud to credit reporting and scoring in the Dominican Republic, Equifax will enable lenders to gain new insights into their consumers’ credit profiles as part of the lending process, helping them open up new mainstream financial services opportunities to unbanked people.

“We are reinvesting our free cash flow in strong, strategic M&A that expands our global footprint and capabilities, while staying true to our company’s purpose: helping people live their financial best,” says Mark W. Begor, Equifax CEO.

“Including DataCrédito, we have completed 11 acquisitions totalling more than $3 billion over the last 18 months that strengthen and broaden Equifax.

More data helps our customers make better decisions for their consumers. With this acquisition, we will bring powerful insights to lenders and service providers that will help them better understand their customers. Almost half of the 10 million Dominicans are unbanked or underbanked, which makes DataCrédito key to opening up new opportunities.”

Since 1998, DataCrédito has provided credit bureau, scoring and analytics services. Its established value proposition, together with the company’s experienced team, provides a solid foundation for growing the business’s leadership in:

• Risk analysis.
• Decision-making.
• Fraud prevention platforms in the Dominican market.

“Equifax is the only cloud-native credit reporting agency. By leveraging our cloud-based global technology framework, we can drive relevant, market-focused innovation. We have also been able to scale and adapt to the specific needs of each country where we operate,” says Lisa Nelson, President of Equifax International. “At the same time, we are focused on bringing more of our enterprise strengths to international regions. More than 4,000 organisations in Latin America are currently DataCrédito customers, with strong growth prospects fuelled by the addition of differentiated data and analytics assets that only Equifax can provide.”

DataCrédito is now part of Equifax’s International business unit, and the business will continue to be led by Alberto Adam, Corporate Vice President of DataCrédito. Adam says: “The combination of Equifax and Proyecto Dominó will improve the credit landscape in the Dominican Republic, helping consumers to generate strategic insights to make better decisions.

Equifax’s expertise and innovative solutions, together with our technical and analytical experience in the region, will help address the country’s need to expand access to credit for consumers and small and medium-sized businesses.”

Chris Jones, President of Equifax Latin America (LATAM), comments on the innovation-driven strategy under way in the region: “We have transformed the markets where Equifax operates by combining our unique data, analytics and technology. With the acquisition of DataCrédito, we are bringing our expertise and comprehensive set of solutions to the Dominican Republic. This is a bridge to the Caribbean that will allow us to connect and stay close to strategic regional customers and deliver better service to our consumers.”

Since the beginning of 2021, Equifax has invested more than US$3 billion in strategic acquisitions to strengthen the company for the future. This acquisition is not expected to have a material impact on Equifax’s 2022 financial results.

For more information about Equifax and the global markets where it operates, visit Equifax.com

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This release contains forward-looking statements and information. All statements that address operating performance and events or developments that we expect or anticipate will occur in the future, the expected financial and operational benefits, synergies and growth from the DataCrédito acquisition.

Our ability to integrate DataCrédito and its products, services, technologies, IT systems and personnel into our operations, and similar statements about our outlook and our business plans, are forward-looking statements.

We believe these forward-looking statements are reasonable when made; however, they are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from our historical experience and our present expectations or projections. These risks and uncertainties include, among others, those described in our 2021 Form 10-K and subsequent SEC filings. As a result of such risks and uncertainties, we urge you not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date when made.

We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

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ABOUT EQUIFAX INC.

At Equifax, we believe knowledge drives progress. As a global data, analytics and technology company, Equifax plays an essential role in the global economy by helping financial institutions, companies, employers and government agencies make critical decisions with greater confidence. Our unique blend of differentiated data, analytics and cloud technology drives insights to power decisions that move people forward. Headquartered in Atlanta and supported by 13,000 employees worldwide, Equifax operates or has investments in 25 countries in North, Central and South America, Europe and the Asia Pacific region.

For more information, visit Equifax.com.