Zest AI Announces Partnership with SkyOne Federal Credit Union to Enable AI-Driven Lending

Zest AI today announced a partnership with SkyOne Federal Credit Union. The member-owned, not-for-profit financial institution will bring Zest's industry-leading AI lending software to their more than 50,000 members nationwide and $700 million in assets.

With Zest's AI software, SkyOne will safely approve credit union members overlooked by traditional national scoring methods, achieving 25% to 30% higher approvals with no added risk.  Zest-built models use more data and better math, resulting in a more accurate assessment of borrower risk. The partnership will also focus on financial inclusion, allowing Sky One to achieve fairer lending outcomes. Finally, Zest's model will allow more auto-decisioning, leading to great efficiency and member satisfaction.

"Our partnership with SkyOne will bring more capital to more members, safely and easily," says Mike de Vere, CEO at Zest AI.  "We are excited to share our software with the SkyOne community and help streamline the lending process for current and future members."

"SkyOne is constantly looking for solutions that provide members with an improved and unbiased experience, and Zest's AI is the best way forward for us," says Joseph Whitaker, SkyOne's President and CEO. "As a rapidly growing credit union, we look for partners that help us create long-term value for our members, offering them the right loans and streamlining the overall process. Additionally, the explainability of the Zest solution stood out as a key differentiator of what SkyOne was looking for in an AI underwriting partner. Together with Zest AI we can get the best offers in front of our members, approve more loans and best serve our community."