As digital lending continues to grow, firms are looking for ways to make their services more efficient and profitable to both lenders and borrowers. Process automation is the first step. The second step is when even the decision-making is handled by machines, using advanced machine learning and artificial intelligence to make real time, 24×7, zero error operations possible.
In the highly competitive lending sector, any technology that can make services more efficient and profitable is worth considering. Artificial Intelligence (AI), with its wide application scope and ability to make a difference even in the short run, is promising to do both.  AI is uniquely suited to solve many of the problems associated with the traditional loan lifecycle, and more particularly, the underwriting process itself. It can make a significant difference to practically every aspect of the lending process, from assessing risk to approving and disbursing loans, and managing assets.  Automation can process huge amounts of customer data accurately in a fraction of a second. AI goes many steps further, where it self learns from this data, making progressively better decisions.  AI is the future. You can either get on board or perish! So, how AI can be used to re-think the lending industry?
AI goes much beyond the binary world of lend-don’t lend decisions. It can improve customer personalization, identify patterns and connections that humans can’t, and answer questions in real-time.
AI, the next wave of  opportunity
Historically, lenders used to make go-no go loan decisions based on a loan applicant’s credit score. Digital lending platforms believe that this kind of information does not paint a complete picture of a loan applicant’s creditworthiness. Firms can use artificial intelligence which is based on the premise that machines can learn and adapt from experience, rather than rely exclusively on pre-programmed logic.
Today, AI has come to play an integral role in many phases of the lending arena, from approving loans, to managing assets, to assessing risks. By 2020 at least five percent of all economic transactions will be handled by autonomous software.
AI offers tremendous opportunities to revolutionize operations in the lending sector. Machine learning can process tetrabytes of data in seconds, which humans could not process in a lifetime. This sheer power of modern computing will lead to faster loan origination, fewer compliance problems, and more inclusive lending overall.
“DIGITAL LENDING IS EXPECTED TO DOUBLE IN SIZE OVER THE NEXT THREE YEARS, REACHING NEARLY 10 PERCENT OF ALL LOANS IN THE U.S. AND EUROPE. THERE ARE NOW SOME 2,000 DIGITAL START-UPS, MANY OF WHICH ARE USING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TO ANALYSE THE TROVES OF DATA CREATED EVERY DAY.”
Benefits of AI:

• Influence sales
• Boost Operations
• Reduce operational costs
• Identify potential defaulters
• Speed up the process
• Better customer engagement
• Generate powerful Insights
• Better decision-making
• Simplify lending process

Data driven AI applications will speed up online lending. Online brokers, lenders and credit bureaus can use algorithms to assess eligibility for credit. On the flip side, AI can also match business owners with the right lender. AI analyses and authenticates users’ transactional data, and income verification and spend analysis helps highlight risk factors used for a richer credit scoring experience. This will reduce the risk of default and increase borrowers’ financial profiling. It can also help automate parts—and maybe all—of the process.
“In 10 years, there will hardly be a credit decision made that does not have some flavour of machine learning behind it,” says Dave Girouard, the CEO of Upstart, an online lender.
How can Insight Consultants help you? 
Insight Consultants specialises in digitizing the lending ecosystem. From general to specialised, prime to sub-prime, we have helped organization evaluate data structures and availability, free up information from siloed systems, and identify the richest areas for machine-fuelled insight and improvement. We can help you provide actionable advice to begin an AI initiative with the right approach and perspective. So, if you are you looking for ways to harness the power of machine learning and AI for your business, or would just like to know more,Contact Us