Two new participants to expand direct FICO® Score delivery, enhancing efficiency and transparency across the mortgage lending process

BOZEMAN, Mont.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 18, 2025-- Global analytics software leader FICO (NYSE: FICO) today announced the addition of two new participants to the FICO® Mortgage Direct License Program through strategic partnerships with Cotality and Ascend Companies, the parent of Advantage Credit, Inc. and Partners Credit & Verification Solutions. These agreements accelerate momentum behind more transparent and efficient options for delivering FICO® Scores to the mortgage industry.

The FICO® Mortgage Direct License Program empowers participating tri-merge resellers, such as Cotality Credco, Advantage Credit and Partners Credit, to generate and deliver FICO® Scores directly to lenders. This innovative program streamlines score delivery and introduces flexible pricing models, helping lenders reduce costs while maintaining compliance and the accuracy of credit decisions—creating a more efficient, competitive mortgage lending environment.

“We’ve listened to our thousands of unique mortgage industry clients and it’s clear they value flexibility and market competition when it comes to fulfilling their credit data mandates,” said Blake Matheson, CEO, Ascend Companies.

By streamlining score delivery, the FICO® Mortgage Direct License Program provides lenders with greater transparency and flexibility, supporting affordability and operational efficiency across the mortgage process.

“Interest in the FICO® Mortgage Direct License Program continues to grow as lenders seek more cost efficient, transparent solutions,” said Julie May, vice president and general manager of B2B Scores at FICO. “The addition of Cotality and Ascend Companies to the list of resellers providing FICO Scores is another important step forward in making direct delivery the new standard for the mortgage industry.”

A formal update will be provided once the solution is commercially available at tri-merge resellers participating in the FICO Mortgage Direct License Program.

For more information on the FICO® Mortgage Direct License Program, visit https://www.ficoscore.com/mortgagedirectlicense.

About FICO

FICO (NYSE: FICO) powers decisions that help people and businesses around the world prosper. Founded in 1956, the company is a pioneer in the use of predictive analytics and data science to improve operational decisions. FICO holds more than 200 U.S. and foreign patents on technologies that increase profitability, customer satisfaction and growth for businesses in financial services, insurance, telecommunications, health care, retail and many other industries. Using FICO solutions, businesses in more than 80 countries do everything from protecting 4 billion payment cards from fraud, to improving financial inclusion, to increasing supply chain resiliency. The FICO^® Score, used by 90% of top U.S. lenders, is the standard measure of consumer credit risk in the US and has been made available in over 40 other countries, improving risk management, credit access and transparency.

Learn more at https://www.fico.com.

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Source: FICO