Overview:
David Bernard, CEO, Equifax UK&I, speaks with recently appointed, Adam Bassett, Banking Director, at Equifax UK&I, and Mark Thundercliffe, Strategic Advisor to Equifax UK&I (and former CRO at HSBC and Citi), about how Equifax UK is deepening its banking partnerships, leveraging cloud investments, and driving enhanced decisioning value for financial institutions.

 

Interview:

David Bernard: Adam, welcome to Equifax. What made this the right moment to join?

Adam Bassett: The opportunity was compelling. Equifax has made major, significant investments in technology, security, and data infrastructure. The cloud transformation has established exceptional flexibility, robust technical capability, and significant scope for ongoing innovation.

The focus now is on what comes next. With this technical foundation established, our focus is on deepening how we partner with financial institutions. We are aligning our capabilities even closer to our banking clients' long-term strategic ambitions, helping them turn technology and data into measurable economic value. It is an exciting time to join the team.

David: What are your primary priorities as Banking Director?

Adam: My focus is ensuring our banking teams operate as a natural extension of our clients' strategic planning. That starts with gaining a thorough understanding of what the bank wants to achieve before discussing specific products or technical options. We lead with a clear purpose and a strong focus on outcomes.

When we engage early, while strategic questions are still being defined, we can help shape the overall outcome and introduce perspectives clients might not have otherwise explored. The most impactful relationships are built on joint problem-solving right from the start.

David: Mark, as Strategic Advisor to Equifax, how do you approach your role?

Mark Thundercliffe: My role centers on connecting bank leadership with Equifax capability. Having spent nearly 40 years in banking as a Chief Risk Officer, Chief Credit Officer, and Chief Executive, I look at Equifax through the lens of a bank executive team.

I always start with the bank's operational goals: What insight is missing? What indicators could be detected earlier? What information truly changes a decision? Exceptional capability is only valuable when applied effectively. The true value of data is not just what it reveals, but what it enables a bank to do differently. Outcome is the only reason to intervene.

David: You and Adam first worked together 15 years ago. How does his appointment reinforce Equifax’s proposition for banking clients?

Mark: Adam and I worked together closely at HSBC, building a strong working relationship based on trust and complementary skills. Adam is highly commercial, understands bank operations intimately, and is exceptionally proactive.

Where I advise Equifax from the bank's perspective, Adam leads our banking business from within Equifax. He knows how to mobilise Equifax resources around client opportunities, while I understand the internal dynamics of a bank evaluating those solutions. Joining forces again gives our clients a powerful combination of internal execution and external CRO insight.

David: Adam, what distinct changes should clients expect in how Equifax partners with them?

Adam: A client-first dialogue. Instead of leading with detailed presentations on our product portfolio, our first question is always: "What are you trying to achieve?"

By understanding their strategic direction, we can pinpoint precisely where Equifax can add value, often discovering high-impact opportunities beyond the initial scope. We want clients leaving every conversation knowing something more about their own business opportunities, not simply more about Equifax.

David: Mark, where do you see the most significant opportunities for banks today?

Mark: Foresight capabilities, fraud prevention, affordability assessment, and customer experience. Overall, the focus must remain on driving better outcomes for the customer.

Financial institutions excel at explaining historical performance. The larger strategic opportunity lies in predictive foresight, knowing something today that changes tomorrow's actions. That applies to growth as much as risk management. Enhanced Information provides the confidence to approve decisions that might otherwise be declined. Great risk management is not simply about becoming better at saying no; it is about becoming better at knowing when and how to safely say yes.

David: Adam, how is Equifax positioned to support that strategic outcome?

Adam: Entirely. Banks possess rich internal customer data, and Equifax brings a distinct, broader market perspective. Bringing those assets together intelligently creates a richer picture and stronger decisions. The true return on data is not simply acquiring more data, it is executing a better decision.

David: How does this evolve the traditional credit bureau relationship?

Adam: It expands it into a strategic advisory partnership. The essential services banks rely on Equifax to provide remain fundamental, but the overall potential is much larger.

When we understand the bank's overarching ambitions, we apply our data, analytics, and cloud technology directly to what they are trying to achieve, rather than simply responding to a technical specification. That moves us closer to the strategic decisions that generate real value.

David: Mark, how does that shift look from a bank executive's perspective?

Mark: A CEO or CRO does not need another generic supplier pitch. They are focused on running a bank and navigating complex market dynamics. They need clarity to make sound decisions with imperfect information.

When Equifax helps a bank see trends earlier, understand customer profiles better, or execute decisions with greater confidence, we become far more valuable. The ambition is not to become a larger supplier, but to become an indispensable strategic partner in supporting their customers.

David: What defines success for an engagement?

Adam: True success means being trusted with our clients' most critical conversations. We define clear success metrics upfront, whether that involves driving revenue growth, improving cost efficiency, or refining risk models. When we hit or exceed those agreed benchmarks, we deliver genuine economic value.

Operationally, success feels like a single unified team working towards a shared objective. Two organisations coming together, acting as one, and executing at pace. Collaboration is key.

David: Mark, what is your benchmark for success?

Mark: Measurable impact. The analytics and cloud technology can be brilliant, but success requires tangible operational change. Did the bank see something differently or take a better action as a result? If so, we created real value.

David: What is your key message to a banking CEO or CRO reading this?

Mark: Bring us the complex challenges, the critical decisions where the answer is not obvious. Let us understand what you are trying to achieve and see whether combining your internal knowledge with Equifax market visibility changes the picture. What can you see now that you could not see before, and what will you do differently because of it?

Adam: You know your customers and your business. Equifax brings a wider market view through data, supported by exceptional people, many of whom joined Equifax directly from the banking industry.

My commitment to any bank executive is that we will bring the right insights, appropriate subject matter experts, and candid views to strive to ensure every conversation is worth your time. Where we identify a clear opportunity, we will ask for a commitment to work alongside your team to test it, establish its commercial value, and execute at pace to deliver agreed results.

 

Bio: Adam Bassett

Adam Bassett

Banking Director, Equifax UK&I

Adam Bassett is Banking Director at Equifax UK&I, where he leads the strategic vision, commercial growth, and client proposition for the banking practice. A seasoned credit data and analytics executive with over 20 years of sector experience, Adam has built a distinguished career holding senior commercial leadership roles across major global data and credit risk organisations, including Dun & Bradstreet, TransUnion, and Experian. Throughout his career, he has specialised in credit risk intelligence, commercial decisioning, and strategic partnership, working closely with leading retail and commercial banks to unlock maximum value from data assets. At Equifax, Adam leverages his deep market knowledge to align advanced cloud analytics and decisioning technology with banking clients' core corporate ambitions, helping financial institutions drive sustainable growth, risk agility, and enhanced customer outcomes.