Argyle, a leading consumer-powered verification platform, has announced a significant strategic investment round that notably includes participation from Mastercard. This move underscores a deepening collaboration between the two entities, particularly following Argyle's earlier launch of asset verification services powered by Mastercard's open finance technology. The investment round also saw continued support from existing investors such as Bain Capital Ventures, Checkr, Rockefeller Asset Management, and SignalFire, though the specific financial amount remains undisclosed.
Argyle's Strategic Collaboration with Mastercard Deepens
The strategic investment by Mastercard is a pivotal moment for Argyle, highlighting the growing recognition and importance of consumer-permissioned data in modern financial services. This partnership extends beyond mere capital infusion, solidifying an alliance that began earlier this year when Argyle integrated Mastercard's open finance capabilities to power its verification of assets offering. This integration allows Argyle customers to access real-time, consumer-permissioned payroll connections, effectively covering approximately 90% of the U.S. workforce. Furthermore, it enables the generation of GSE-compliant reports, encompassing verification of income (VOI), verification of employment (VOE), verification of assets (VOA), and combined verification of assets/income (VOAI) – all from a unified platform.
Shmulik Fishman, Co-Founder and CEO of Argyle, emphasized the transformative nature of this investment, stating, "This investment is more than capital—it's validation. We're deepening our ability to serve customers with a comprehensive verification platform built on real-time payroll connections and open finance capabilities. By combining these strengths, we're eliminating friction from verification workflows and giving lenders, fintechs, and tenant screeners a smarter path to faster, more accurate decisions." This sentiment encapsulates Argyle's commitment to innovation and efficiency in the verification sector, promising a future where data access is seamless, secure, and user-controlled.
Transforming Verification Workflows
Argyle's platform is designed to revolutionize how businesses verify critical consumer data for a multitude of purposes, including lending, hiring, and tenant screening. By leveraging direct, consumer-permissioned connections to payroll and financial accounts, Argyle offers a real-time, accurate, and secure alternative to traditional, often cumbersome, manual verification processes. The ability to generate comprehensive reports like VOI, VOE, and VOA from a single source drastically reduces the time and resources typically required, leading to expedited decision-making and improved operational efficiencies for businesses across various sectors.
Driving Efficiency and Cost Savings for Customers
The impact of Argyle's technology is evident in the successes reported by its partners. For instance, Checkr, a background check company, has managed to slash verification timelines from days to mere seconds, achieving this at a remarkable 90% lower cost compared to legacy solutions. Similarly, Regional Finance has significantly enhanced its operational effectiveness by automating verifications for over 65% of its borrowers, streamlining its lending processes. Moreover, Mutual of Omaha, a prominent financial services company, has realized substantial savings, reporting over $50,000 per month in verification costs. These examples highlight the tangible benefits and return on investment that Argyle's platform delivers to its diverse clientele.
These impressive figures serve as a testament to the robust capabilities of Argyle's verification platform, showcasing its potential to not only optimize operational workflows but also to foster significant cost reductions for businesses. The ability to provide instant, accurate, and secure data verification empowers companies to make more informed decisions rapidly, thereby enhancing customer experience and driving competitive advantage in a fast-paced digital economy.
The Growing Importance of Consumer-Permissioned Data
The increased investment in Argyle signals a broader industry trend towards consumer-permissioned verifications and the expansion of open finance infrastructure. As consumers increasingly seek greater control over their financial data, platforms like Argyle are becoming indispensable. This shift is not just about convenience; it's about empowering individuals while providing businesses with more reliable and timely data access, fostering a more transparent and equitable financial ecosystem. Ajay Agarwal, a partner at Bain Capital Ventures, reiterated this sentiment, stating, "Argyle has built critical infrastructure for a category that's long been overlooked by modern fintech. We've supported the company from the early stages, and this latest round reflects our continued belief in their team, their momentum, and the long-term potential of consumer-permissioned data to transform verifications across financial services."
Argyle's Journey and Innovation
Founded in 2018 and headquartered in New York, Argyle has consistently demonstrated its commitment to innovation in the fintech space. This strategic investment comes approximately a year and a half after the company successfully secured $30 million in Series C funding, a round led by Rockefeller Asset Management's Fintech Innovation Fund. Argyle also made a notable debut at FinovateSpring 2022 in San Francisco, where its Co-Founder and CEO, Shmulik Fishman, showcased the company's Link 4.0 design update. This update focused on enhancing the transparency and trustworthiness of the account linking experience for customers, further solidifying Argyle's user-centric approach to its platform development. This history of continuous development and strategic funding rounds positions Argyle as a key player in shaping the future of digital verification.
