Costa Mesa, Calif., April 2, 2020 — Experian®, the world’s leading global information services company, today announced that it will offer all American-owned small businesses free access to their Experian business credit report from now until May 1, 2020, to help small business owners in need during the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. By accessing a free business credit report now, small business owners can understand where their credit score stands and look for the best lending options for their business before they obtain funding.
To further help small businesses gain access to capital they need, Experian also launched its free COVID-19 U.S. Business Risk Index to assist lenders and government organizations in understanding how to make lending options available to the business segments that need it the most. This new risk index can help business risk professionals better understand the impact that the pandemic may have on commercial operations based on several key factors. This methodology combines business risk, anticipated impact on business industries and real-time COVID-19 case data to help businesses better simulate various impact scenarios down to the state level to help develop enterprise strategies.
“At Experian, we are committed to helping small businesses with their financial health and we are proud to offer U.S. businesses a free credit report and give lenders and government organizations access to our new COVID-19 U.S. Business Risk Index during this unprecedented time in our country,” said Hiq Lee, president of Experian’s Business Information Services. “Experian knows that small businesses are pivotal to the success of our communities and ultimately our economy as a whole. We want to do our part to ensure that small businesses, who are dealing with the immediate implications of the COVID-19 pandemic, can get free access to their credit report now so they can better understand what capital is available to them. Our new risk index will also effectively allow lenders and government organizations to help small businesses gain access to the right types of capital that they need.”
Experian is committed to creating opportunities for small businesses to succeed. As a leading provider of business data and analytical insights, Experian maintains credit information on approximately 25 million active U.S. businesses and provides comprehensive, third party-verified information on nearly 100 percent of all U.S. companies. Experian is a leader in providing data and predictive insights to organizations, helping them mitigate risk and improve profitability.
“At Experian, we support the signing of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) as it’s a great step toward economic recovery. The CARES Act provides grants and loans to small businesses with an unprecedented loan forgiveness program. Now more than ever, it’s important for small business owners to monitor their business credit score changes so they can proactively manage it.” said Lee.
Small business owners can get access to their free Experian business credit report here: www.freecompanycredit.com.
To access the Experian COVID-19 U.S. Business Risk Index, please visit: https://public.tableau.com/profile/nicolette.emory5647#!/vizhome/ExperianCOVID-19U_S_BusinessRiskIndex/TableauPublicVersion.
For small business advice and credit education from Experian, please visit: https://www.experian.com/blogs/small-business-matters/.
About Experian
Experian is the world’s leading global information services company. During life’s big moments — from buying a home or a car to sending a child to college to growing a business by connecting with new customers — we empower consumers and our clients to manage their data with confidence. We help individuals to take financial control and access financial services, businesses to make smarter decisions and thrive, lenders to lend more responsibly, and organizations to prevent identity fraud and crime.
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