Hope Macy, a Payments Institution and Credit Reference Agency regulated by the FCA, has announced the strategic acquisition of Slick Solutions. Hope Macy, recognised for its consumer duty compliant app, Family Connect, which safeguards individuals from financial harm, aims to revolutionise the financial prospects of low-income and vulnerable consumers through this deal. The acquisition leverages Slick Solutions’ innovative loan origination platform to provide fairer and more accessible credit.
Hope Macy’s cutting-edge technology, already utilised by leading retail banks, has now been integrated into Slick Solutions’ comprehensive loan platform. The platform, trusted by over 20 prominent institutions, including responsible lenders, credit unions, and banks, is now enhanced with Hope Macy’s capabilities. This integration equips lenders with the tools to make faster, more accurate, and data-driven decisions while upholding consumer welfare at the forefront of lending processes. It also enables lenders to achieve greater compliance with consumer duty regulations, reduce operational costs, and discover new revenue streams.
By deploying advanced machine learning, Hope Macy’s APIs can assess the likelihood of loan defaults, including their potential timing, without relying on traditional credit scoring methods. These traditional models often marginalise individuals with limited or no credit histories.
The full lending process, from application to repayment and collections, now benefits from Hope Macy’s regulated APIs. This innovation protects consumers from financial harm, provides greater and more affordable access to credit, and lowers the overall cost and risk of lending. Lenders are supported with enhanced consumer data, facilitating safer lending practices for vulnerable groups while also offering tailored APIs to identify unique risks specific to these populations.
Slick Solutions, known for its transformative loan processing services, addresses FCA consumer duty obligations, automates credit agreement reviews, and streamlines capital provision for financial institutions. The company now offers a one-stop solution for loan origination, alongside comprehensive API services required to evaluate and manage loan applications. Furthermore, its advanced payment gateway provides lenders with improved transaction control and a cost-effective alternative to traditional systems.
With the rising number of low-income and vulnerable consumers, the combined strengths of Hope Macy and Slick Solutions address a critical need for inclusive and ethical lending solutions.
Sam Manning, CEO of Hope Macy, commented: “This acquisition is transformative. We wanted to protect consumers from financial harm, and the starting point is the credit process. By placing ourselves right at the start, we can assist lenders in making better decisions and advancing FCA consumer duty. Building on our experience in the vulnerable consumer sector, we offer lenders one of the largest credit platforms with consumer duty at its core, ensuring that consumers achieve good financial outcomes.”
Luke Scowen, CEO of Slick Solutions, added: “This is a game-changing moment for the credit industry. By merging our powerful technologies and regulatory permissions, we’re setting a new benchmark for efficiency, speed, and cost savings across the board. We put the duty to protect consumers at the start of the credit journey and offer our lenders high-quality loan management services. This way, both consumers and our business clients benefit.”
The deal was supported by Square One Law, an ethical B Corp with offices in Newcastle, Leeds, and Darlington. Obrenza received legal guidance from the firm throughout the acquisition.
Ashraf Ali, Corporate Partner at Square One Law, stated: “We were delighted to advise Obrenza on this strategic acquisition and enjoyed working alongside their team to bring together two leading ethical consumer finance technology businesses. This merger marks a significant step forward, with Slick Solutions’ loan origination platform perfectly complementary to the Obrenza existing technology offering. The result will empower financial institutions to provide even greater support to low-income and vulnerable consumers. It has been a pleasure to work with the team and be able to contribute to a transaction that aligns so closely with our own values of integrity and client-first commitment.”
Ashraf was joined by Vanessa Middleton, Helen Brain, Emily Warman, and Dominika Cudak to facilitate the deal.
