Equifax Reports Slight Q2 Revenue Bump As Breach Deal Looms

Equifax on Wednesday (July 24) reported that its second quarter 2019 operating revenue hit $880 million, up slightly from the approximately $877 million reported for the same period last year. The latest financial earnings report from Equifax follows recent news that credit reporting company is close to a $700 million deal to settle data breach probes.

The 2017 Equifax data hack impacted more than 143 million people worldwide. The anticipated payment is part of a settlement with U.S. and state regulators, although the dollar amount could change depending on how many people file claims. A fund will be established to compensate consumers, and there will be a special website and phone line for claims. Equifax will also have to further improve how it protects and handles consumer data.

For the second quarter of 2019, revenue for the company’s U.S. Information Services (USIS) business increased 2 percent to $332.7 million, the company said. Revenue for the company’s international operations declined about 9 percent to $229 million. The company also reported Q2 net income attributed to Equifax of $66.8 million, which was down compared to net income attributable to Equifax of $144.8 million in the second quarter of 2018.

“The second quarter was a positive step forward for Equifax as we delivered solid financial results while continuing significant investments in our multi-year $1.25 billion EFX 2020 cloud technology and security transformation program,” said Mark Begor, CEO of Equifax. “During the quarter, we announced the acquisition of PayNet, a leader in commercial lending data and insights as a part of our focus on expanding our differentiated data assets. Earlier this week, we announced a comprehensive resolution of significant U.S. consumer-related litigation and regulatory investigations arising from the 2017 cybersecurity incident. The settlement is an important step for consumers and Equifax as we move forward from the 2017 cybersecurity incident and focus on investing in our future as a leading data, analytics and technology company.”