Credit reporting agency TransUnion ‘a finalist’ in bid for Hong Kong’s next big fintech project despite data security row
- Chicago-based firm competing with IBM-led consortium to manage Know Your Client Utility service for city’s banks
- Firm’s local office earlier forced to halt online consumer credit report services after newspaper said it had accessed data on city’s leader and finance chief
Consumer credit reporting agency TransUnion is on the cusp of securing the right to run Hong Kong’s next big fintech project despite the exposure last week of a gaping security flaw that allowed access to the personal data of the city’s leader.
The Chicago-based company is competing with an IBM-led consortium to become the sole manager of a major new service for Hong Kong banks, according to sources familiar with the situation.
The goal is to provide a centralised digital database of consumers’ personal and credit information to allow for the sharing of data across financial institutions to improve the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of services.
The Hong Kong bureau of TransUnion was last Thursday forced to freeze its online consumer credit report services after a local newspaper said it had gained access to the personal data of Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and finance minister Paul Chan Mo-po.
The timing of the breach is awkward for the firm as it vies for the fintech contract from the Hong Kong Association of Banks.
TransUnion forced to suspend online services over personal data security flaw
The project is called Know Your Client Utility (KYCU) and aims to create a single source of customer data and documents across the industry while addressing newly tightened international standards for anti-money-laundering regulations. Know Your Client is known as the process of a business verifying the identity of its customers and assessing potential security risks.
