LendingMetrics has reported a “skyrocketing” in enquiries for its OpenBankVision (OBV) platform following the acquisition of Credit Kudos by Apple.

Requests for information about the OBV platform by LendingMetrics have been significantly higher than they were prior to Credit Kudos’s purchase last month. The firm believes demand has been spurred by industry speculation that Apple intends to pivot Credit Kudos away from business sales to focus more on consumer activity.

Credit Kudos specialised in Open Banking software for finance providers, enabling them to measure financial behaviour and accurately conduct credit assessments. Along with LendingMetrics, it has been one of the main providers of such data, and commentators have speculated that the acquisition by Apple suggests the tech giant may plan to expand its lending services, potentially paving the way for the Apple Card – available in the US since 2019 – to be released in the UK.

LendingMetrics’ OBV platform allows lenders to paint a detailed picture of a consumer’s finance by using real-time banking data. The solution gives access to 90+ days of fully categorised data once consumers have confirmed consent for read-only access to their accounts. It then interrogates the accounts and filters the data, automatically identifying salary payments, ongoing commitments and any unusual activity, so rapid affordability and creditworthiness assessments can be conducted.

David Wylie (pictured), CEO of LendingMetrics, said: “We are now seeing massively more interest in OBV than only a few months ago. This is undoubtedly due to the Credit Kudos changes, which have come at a time when interest in Open Banking has been generally rising.”