Experian

 Experian plc is a multinational data broker and consumer credit reporting company headquartered in Dublin, Ireland. Experian collects and aggregates information on more than 1 billion people and businesses including 235 million individual U.S. consumers and more than 25 million U.S. businesses.^[7][8] It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. Experian is a partner in USPS address validation. It is one of the "Big Three" credit-reporting agencies, alongside TransUnion and Equifax.^[9]

In addition to its credit services, Experian also sells decision analytic and marketing assistance to businesses, including individual fingerprinting and targeting.^[10] Its consumer services include online access to credit history and products meant to protect from fraud and identity theft.^[11] Like all credit reporting agencies, the company is required by U.S. law to provide consumers with one free credit report every year.^[12]

History

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The company has its origins in Credit Data Corporation, a business which was acquired by TRW Inc. in 1968,^[13] and subsequently renamed TRW Information Systems and Services Inc.^[14]

In November 1996, TRW sold the unit, as Experian, to Bain Capital and Thomas H. Lee Partners.^[15] Just one month later, the two firms sold Experian to The Great Universal Stores Limited in Manchester, England, a retail conglomerate with millions of customers paying for goods on credit (later renamed GUS).^[16] GUS merged its own credit-information business, CCN, which at the time was the largest credit-service company in the UK, into Experian.^[17]

In October 2006, Experian was demerged from GUS and listed on the London Stock Exchange.^[18][19]

In August 2005, Experian accepted a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) over charges that Experian had violated a previous settlement with the FTC. The FTC alleged that ads for the "free credit report" did not adequately disclose that Experian customers would automatically be enrolled in Experian's $79.95 credit-monitoring program.^{[20][Note 1]}

In January 2008, Experian announced that it would cut more than 200 jobs at its Nottingham office.^[21]

Experian shut down its Canadian operations on 14 April 2009.^[22]

In March 2017, the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau fined Experian $3 million for providing invalid credit scores to consumers.^[23]

In October 2017, Experian acquired Clarity Services, a credit bureau specialising in alternative consumer data.^[24]

In October 2024, Experian agreed to acquire Brazilian digital fraud prevention provider ClearSale for $350 million.^[25]