Learn how Marlette Funding uses DirectID to power their Best Egg product, creating frictionless online personal loan experiences.

Who are Best Egg?

Based out of Delaware in the United States, Best Egg, a consumer-lending platform developed by Marlette Holdings, Inc., is a financial technology provider on a mission to find better ways to make money more accessible. Since launching in 2014, the company has facilitated over $14B in loans to more than 600,000 people, of which most used the loans to finance large purchases or consolidate and pay off debt.

Streamlining the Application Process with Bank Data

The safeguarding and permissible use of data is of high importance to Marlette. Through Marlette, Best Egg loans have been able to provide excellent service with optimal user experience by truly understanding each customer and prospective customer.

Best Egg captures up to 5,000 distinct quantitative and qualitative attributes per customer including over 1,500 proprietary credit attributes, applicant data, data from more than 10 external data providers, “on-us” loan behaviours, the customer’s digital footprint, contact interactions, and survey data.

Marlette’s goal for Best Egg is to make the process of applying and receiving a personal loan simple and easy for consumers. Qualified applicants can instantly view loan offers with no impact on their credit scores and receive funds in as little as one business day. Verifying an applicant’s bank account information is a critical step in the process to validate information and ensure the funds are accurately dispersed. By utilizing DirectID as a safe and trusted source of customer data, Marlette can reduce the effort required by the customer to secure loan offers and receive funds.

Addressing the Fear Surrounding Data

We’re all familiar with customer concerns about the use, safeguarding and sharing of sensitive information. Best Egg, through Marlette, has been able to overcome this challenge by holding itself to the strictest guidelines and by making the process transparent. With the customer’s consent, Best Egg can verify the applicant’s bank account, income and/or employment by analyzing their bank transactions.

While verifying an applicant’s bank information via DirectID is an optional step, many applicants opt into verifying data through DirectID for multiple reasons. It’s safe, secure and happens in real-time.  

While an applicant’s bank login credentials are needed, neither the Best Egg site nor Marlette’s employees can capture or have access to the customer’s credentials. These credentials are used only for one-time corroboration of an applicant’s bank account ownership, income and/or employment.

How does Marlette Funding use DirectID?

Marlette uses the DirectID Connect widget within Best Egg’s online personal loan application process to verify bank account, income and/or employment.

Once the data is accessed, Marlette ensures the identity on the bank account matches the identity of the applicant, and that the bank account provided on the application matches the bank account information from DirectID. Validating these facts ensures Best Egg’s originator can transmit the loan proceeds electronically, allowing the consumer to receive their loan funds in a safe and efficient manner.

What Benefits does DirectID provide to Marlette Funding?

Customer Control

The applicant is always in control of the application process. Even if the applicant has started the bank connection process, they may choose to abandon the process and submit the required paperwork. The use of bank data is a one-time event, and how that data is extrapolated and used is clearly explained. Explaining the clear purpose for requesting bank data, and making it an optional step, puts applicants at ease with the application process. Leveraging the DirectID Connect widget accelerated the funding process, as well as lowered the application dropout rate.

Application Fraud

Application fraud is a constant issue that requires extreme vigilance on all loan applications. Some fraudulent applications rely on the ability to inflate a bank statement or artificially doctor a statement to make it appear that the applicant has more money than they really do. Other fraudulent applications are based on third party fraud – an individual placing a loan application with the malicious intent of misrepresenting who they are. DirectID provides the protection and utility that comes from accessing data straight from a customer’s bank account, rather than that provided by a potential fraudster.

Improved Acceptance Rates

A key driver for business growth has been to widen the pool of prospective applicants. Using bank data allows more customers to gain approval by illustrating their responsibility with their finances.

Improving the Speed of Funding and Application Dropout

Working with DirectID has generated a win-win situation for Marlette and loan applicants. The partnership has succeeded because of its forward-thinking and practical methods of approaching and making the best permissible use of data.

Best Egg has benefited by improving the speed of funding and application dropout rate. By putting customers firmly in control of the application process, safeguarding applicant’s data and using it only once, and for a permissible purpose, makes the process safe, secure and happen in real-time. This ultimately allows Best Egg’s lenders to deposit funds in a customer’s bank account in as little as 24 hours for some applications. The combined efforts of DirectID and Marlette contribute to Best Egg’s stellar reputation in the market.