ClearScore (Acquisition Attempt & Strategic Investments)
2018
Outcome
Following UK CMA regulatory review, shifted capital into developing proprietary Experian app tools, driving 180M+ global members.
Experian
Acquisitions
Experian Acquisitions
3
Major Deals Covered
What are Experian's biggest acquisitions?
This page covers 3 major deals from 2007 to 2018, each with its price where disclosed and the reason behind it.
- Major deals covered
- 3
- First deal
- 2007
- Most recent
- 2018
| Company | Year | Price | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serasa (Brazil) | 2007 | Undisclosed | Acquired majority control of Brazil's premier credit reporting bureau to establish dominant market leadership in Latin America. |
| ClearScore (Acquisition Attempt & Strategic Investments) | 2018 | Undisclosed | Sought to acquire leading UK fintech credit marketplace to expand free consumer credit monitoring distribution. |
| CSIdentity (CSID) | 2016 | Undisclosed | Acquired provider of identity theft protection and identity management software to power consumer fraud alerts. |
- What companies has Experian bought?
- Major acquisitions by Experian documented here include ClearScore (Acquisition Attempt & Strategic Investments) (2018), CSIdentity (CSID) (2016) and Serasa (Brazil) (2007).
- What is Experian's most recent acquisition?
- The most recent Experian acquisition documented here is ClearScore (Acquisition Attempt & Strategic Investments), in 2018.
CSIdentity (CSID)
2016
Outcome
Provided the foundational technology powering Experian IdentityWorks and enterprise white-label fraud monitoring.
Serasa (Brazil)
2007
Outcome
Transformed Serasa Experian into the group's highest-growth division, contributing over $1.4 billion in annual high-margin revenue.
Experian's Growth & Acquisition Strategy
Experian's forward growth strategy centers on three expansive pillars: scaling the Ascend cloud analytics platform, expanding consumer financial marketplaces, and driving financial inclusion in emerging markets. Ascend is Experian's multi-tenant cloud analytics environment, allowing data scientists at global banks to combine their internal records with Experian's credit bureau data to build and backtest proprietary credit risk models in hours rather than months. In Consumer Services, Experian is expanding its digital insurance marketplace and automotive comparison engines, helping consumers lower their monthly auto and home insurance premiums. In Latin America, Serasa Experian is expanding digital SME lending and positive credit scoring (Cadastro Positivo) across Brazil, Colombia, and Peru.
How Experian Makes Money
Experian generates revenue through B2B credit reporting fees, decision analytics software licenses, fraud verification queries, and consumer marketplace commissions. In B2B Credit, banks, auto lenders, and mortgage brokers pay per-inquiry transactional fees to pull consumer and business credit reports to evaluate creditworthiness. In Decision Analytics, enterprise clients purchase annual software licenses and cloud SaaS subscriptions for PowerCurve and Ascend, using predictive machine learning models to automate loan approvals in milliseconds. In Consumer Services, Experian monetizes over 180 million free consumer members by offering premium identity protection subscriptions and earning lead generation commissions when consumers match with credit cards, personal loans, or auto insurance on its comparison marketplace.
Experian Acquisitions FAQ
Does Experian acquire other companies?
Yes, Experian executes targeted acquisitions to integrate complementary technologies, expand intellectual property, and enter new market verticals.
What is Experian's acquisition strategy?
Experian focuses on bolt-on acquisitions that can be rapidly integrated into its core technology architecture and commercial distribution channels.
How does Experian fund its acquisitions?
Acquisitions are typically funded through cash from operations, revolving credit facilities, and strategic equity considerations.
What was one of Experian's notable acquisitions?
Experian has acquired specialized technology assets that enhance its core platform capabilities and expand its addressable customer base.
How does Experian handle post-merger integration?
By migrating acquired codebases into its unified cloud infrastructure and retaining key engineering talent within specialized innovation pods.
Are acquisitions a primary or secondary growth driver?
Inorganic growth is secondary to robust organic product development, serving as a tactical accelerator for specific strategic capabilities.
Explore Experian
Core profile pages, founders and related research hubs for this company.