OK, so I am a credit nerd. I look at my FICO score regularly offered by credit card companies, as free product benefits. Because the FICO score is so universally accepted, I try to predict my score from month to month, based on whether I opened an account, paid down a large about or ran a significant charge against my account. Most of the time, I am directionally right, but not always.
Now, just about everyone can do it if they enjoy seeing the consequences of their credit card activity.
- Analytics software firm FICO recently revealed 250 million consumer credit and loan accounts now have access to FICO Scores used by lenders via the FICO Score Open Access program.
- “The FICO Score Open Access program offers unprecedented transparency, empowering millions of consumers to see the exact FICO Scores used by their lenders for credit decisions,”
Many issuers provide the information for free.
- FICO officials said the process involves participating institutions delivering the scores to consumers via a variety of channels, including online banking websites, mobile applications, and paper statements.
- More than 100 financial institutions participate in the endeavor, in addition to eight of the top 10 credit card issuers.
- Officials said the FICO Score is the standard measure of American consumer credit risk and is used in more than 90 percent of consumer lending decisions while more than 10 billion FICO Scores are purchased in the United States each year by lenders for their risk management decisions.
Some say it is idle curiosity. To me, it is a free exercise that I can do when paying my bills online. More fun than making a payment. Go figure.
Overview by Brian Riley, Director, Credit Advisory Service at Mercator Advisory Group
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