Industry Financial technology Type of business Privately held company | Products Personal Loan Founded 2015 | |
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Key people Rohit Mittal, Priyank Singh, Amit Singhal (investor), Kevin Hale (investor), Dalton Caldwell (investor) Headquarters San Francisco, California, United States | ||
Stilt is a lending platform for expatriates based in the United States of America. The company furbishes loans to borrowers of foreign origin, residing in the U.S.
Contents
History
Stilt was started by Rohit Mittal and Priyank Singh during a startup weekend event. Being former room mates at the Columbia University, they migrated to the U.S. from India to pursue a master's degree. However, without a credit score in the new country, they faced considerable inconvenience in renting an apartment and securing a post paid cellular connection. Despite receiving a credit card, their monthly limit was restricted to $500.
A couple of years after their graduation, Rohit moved to the Bay area as a data scientist in September 2013 Priyank moved in December 2014. The two kept themselves busy by developing prototypes of ideas for a number of industries in their free time. The idea for Stilt struck them while developing an API which helped financial institutions determine risk of thin-file/no-file clients for a startup weekend contest. The idea received top honours, however the concept lay dormant for months. It was not until the two noticed a good deal of applicants signing up on their website, seeking personal loans. They decided to pitch in to their personal savings to extend a line of credit to the shortlisted candidates.
In 2016, Rohit and Priyank were accepted by Y Combinator.
Company Operations
Despite being based in California, the company caters to applicants from multiple states. Stilt's clientele comprises primarily of students of foreign origin and migrant workers who do not have a credit score.
Products and Services
Stilt disburses personal loans to foreign expatriates who do not have an American credit rating are therefore unable to approach conventional financial institutions. The company screens applicants through its in-house algorithm which considers the borrower's visa status, job history, bank account statement and college transcript and social media profile. Candidates can apply for a loan up to a sum of $25,000. Rather than considering a generic score, Stilt evaluates applicants based on the probability of them finding employment opportunities in the U.S., financial status in the past and the likelihood of repatriation to home country.