Associated Bank Advances Credit Risk Strategy with Upgrade to FICO Auto Score 10
Associated Bank leads the industry with a bold move to FICO's most predictive auto credit score, setting a new standard in predictive risk management
FICO® (NYSE:FICO), global analytics software leader, today announced that Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) ("Associated"), has successfully upgraded from FICO® Auto Score 8 to FICO® Auto Score 10, leveraging dual processing to validate predictive benefits, enhance underwriting accuracy, and improve borrower assessment.
This strategic move positions Associated Bank at the forefront of credit risk innovation, demonstrating its commitment to smarter and faster lending decisions. By adopting FICO's latest scoring model, the bank is accelerating its ability to assess borrower credit readiness in a rapidly evolving credit landscape without compromising loan volume.
"The implementation of FICO Auto Score 10 is a game-changer for our risk and sales teams," said Steven Zandpour, executive vice president, Head of Consumer and Business Banking at Associated Bank. "It empowers us to make faster, more predictive credit decisions and has already accelerated our loan approval rates. FICO Auto Score 10 gives us the agility to assess borrower terms with greater precision, without sacrificing loan volume. We're especially excited by the early improvements in predicting future delinquency, particularly for thin-file and bankruptcy-prone segments."
Associated Bank implemented a dual processing approach, pulling both FICO® Auto Score 10 and FICO® Auto Score 8 to compare real-time borrower results with origination and account management strategies. This method enabled the bank to cut months off traditional implementation times while validating the score's predictive power and maintaining operational continuity.
Preliminary analysis from dual processing and account management reviews has already shown:
- A higher percentage of borrowers scoring in top tiers,
- Stronger predictive separation for underserved profiles, including thin-file applicants and bankruptcy-prone segments,
- Early indicators of increased approval rates, with full delinquency validation expected within 18 months.
"Associated Bank's rapid adoption of FICO Auto Score 10 is a powerful example of how financial institutions can lead with agility and innovation," said Shams Blanc, vice president of Auto Scores at FICO. "By leveraging dual processing, lenders can accelerate implementation timelines and validate predictive improvements in real time, without disrupting operations. This kind of forward-thinking approach is exactly what today's credit landscape demands, and we're proud to support Associated Bank in delivering smarter and faster lending decisions."
FICO® Auto Score 10 is the most powerful FICO auto-specific score yet, built on recent credit data to deliver sharper risk separation where auto lenders need it most: mid-band and thin-file borrowers. It outperforms prior versions in predicting defaults, especially for prime thin/new-to-credit and subprime segments, helping lenders approve more loans while avoiding costly charge-offs. Designed for seamless adoption, FICO Auto Score 10 keeps the trusted 250–900 range, reason codes, and compliance readiness lenders expect.
Auto dealers and lenders can learn more about FICO® Auto Score 10 and its predictive power by visiting: https://www.fico.com/en/latest-thinking/solution-sheet/fico-auto-score-10.
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 US 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 four billion payment cards from fraud, to improving financial inclusion, to increasing supply chain resiliency. The FICO® Score, used by 90% of top US 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/en.
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About Associated Banc-Corp
Associated Banc-Corp (NYSE:ASB) has total assets of $41 billion and is the largest bank holding company based in Wisconsin. Headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Associated is a leading Midwest banking franchise, offering a full range of financial products and services from nearly 200 banking locations serving more than 100 communities throughout Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota and Missouri. The company also operates loan production offices in Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, New York, Ohio and Texas. Associated Bank, N.A. is an Equal Housing Lender, Equal Opportunity Lender and Member FDIC. More information about Associated Banc-Corp is available at www.associatedbank.com.
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