Canadian fintech Borrowell announced this week that more than two million Canadians are now members of its platform. This announcement comes during Financial Literacy Month in Canada, as Borrowell continues its mission to educate and empower consumers to take control of their financial health.
“At the heart of Borrowell’s mission is making financial prosperity possible for all Canadians,” said Andrew Graham, Borrowell’s co-founder and CEO. “This has never been more important as consumers grapple with the economic shocks and personal impacts of the global pandemic. Our members value the simplicity with which we help them improve their financial well-being.”
“As Borrowell continues to grow, we will launch more proprietary products and features to meet our members’ financial needs. We plan on expanding our credit building solutions, including secured cards and credit building loans, to help credit-challenged individuals establish credit history and improve their long-term financial health. We will also continue to grow our marketplace of financial products from trusted lenders to help Canadians from all backgrounds gain access to affordable credit.”
In 2016, Borrowell began offering free credit scores through a partnership with Equifax Canada, and has since introduced additional free services such as weekly credit monitoring, personalized financial product recommendations, and digital tools like Molly, Canada’s first AI-powered personal credit coach. Borrowell has also invested in machine learning to help its members make financial decisions related to their credit profile and specific goals.
Financial stress has been top-of-mind for many Canadians since the start of the pandemic, and the pandemic has highlighted disparities between different groups of Canadians. One study from Borrowell found consumers with poor credit scores have at least one missed payment on their credit report and are more than 430 times more likely to miss a bill payment compared to consumers with excellent credit scores. A more recent study found non-homeowners are more than twice as likely to miss a bill payment than homeowners, despite homeowners having 20 times more debt than non-homeowners.
“Almost two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, Canadians continue to assess the health of their finances. As a trusted Borrowell partner, we want to help Canadians live their financial best,” said Sue Hutchison, president and general manager of Equifax Canada. “In a recent consumer survey conducted by Equifax for Financial Literacy Month, we noted 64 per cent of consumers have checked their credit reports in the past year and 26 per cent have checked their credit reports within the past month. Although personal finances are still a concern for many Canadians, it’s encouraging to see people are taking the time to better understand that credit is an important part of their financial well-being.”
In 2021, Borrowell said it has provided more than 38 million credit report updates to customers. Its app has been downloaded more than 750,000 times in 30 months and its marketplace features more than 75 financial product providers.