PortX and MeridianLink Team to Improve Digital Lending

Financial infrastructure company PortX has teamed with MeridianLink to improve digital lending.

PortX has integrated with MeridianLink, which powers digital lending and account opening for financial institutions (FIs), according to a Wednesday (June 28) news release.

“FIs need to stay ahead of the competition by integrating faster with innovative lending solutions,” PortX CEO David Wexler said in the release. “This partnership will bring MeridianLink’s scalable and cloud-based platforms to more FIs, allowing them to deliver personalized lending experiences and build deeper relationships with their customers.”

PortX’s platform will enable FIs to integrate MeridianLink’s digital tools into their systems, giving them easier access to digital lending and account opening capabilities along with data verification solutions for consumer reporting agencies, according to the release.

“These capabilities can help FIs improve their lending processes and provide consumers with a seamless and engaging customer experience,” the release said.

The partnership is happening as many small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) turn to digital lending channels for funding as traditional sources of working capital dry up.

“Digital Banking Rises to Meet SMB Needs,” a PYMNTS and NCR collaboration, found that SMBs hiked prices last year to offset higher supplier and operating costs. Now, many said they have increased prices as far as possible to stay competitive, leading to a dash for new sources of working capital from non-traditional sources.

“The pressure to find the right working capital solution is increasing, with one survey finding that big banks’ approval rate for business loans dipped to just below 15%, a 10-month low,” the study said. “Alternative lending saw the biggest increase at nearly 2%, meaning small businesses are increasingly looking to FinTechs and digital-first offerings to deal with cost pressures.”

SMBs are seeking out digital sources for lending, and further PYMNTS research found that a third of these businesses will likely use large national banks to meet their financial needs — more than any other category of lender.

“Lenders will benefit from understanding SMBs’ preferences to identify the most suitable prospects,” PYMNTS wrote earlier this week.

These preferences change according to the SMBs’ relative size and line of business. For example, 39% of construction firms work with large banks for credit lines, while smaller firms are likely to do business with regional banks.