[Exclusive] US Startup 'Banquishy' Partners with Korea's K-Bank to Expand Loan Eligibility [MWC On-site]

Jose Fernandez, CEO of Banquishy, meets K Bank CEO Choi Woohyung at MWC to discuss collaboration
Exploring new customer acquisition through AI-based alternative credit evaluation

On the 5th (local time), Jose Fernandez Banquishi, CEO of a U.S. startup, interviewed with Asia Economy at the MWC venue in Barcelona, Spain. Photo by Yujin Park

At the ‘MWC (Mobile World Congress) 2025’ held in Barcelona, Spain, the US alternative credit rating startup ‘Banquishy’ and South Korea’s internet bank ‘K Bank’ held discussions to discover new credit loan candidates. On the 5th (local time), Banquishy’s CEO Jose Fernandez told Asia Economy at the MWC exhibition that he met with K Bank’s CEO Choi Woo-hyung and executives.

Banquishy is a US startup that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze the creditworthiness of ‘Gig Workers’ (short-term contract workers) with irregular income and determine loan eligibility. This technology is expected to support K Bank in discovering new customers.

CEO Fernandez said, "K Bank and other Korean financial institutions are struggling to provide financial services to people with insufficient credit information, such as ultra-short-term workers or freelancers," adding, "We are hopeful to offer a solution for this." He further explained, "So far, only about 3% of the data we hold on gig workers has been used for credit evaluation, but with AI, we can analyze much more data going forward."

Banquishy secures data on credit loan candidates among irregular workers by connecting with platforms like Uber, Baedal Minjok, YouTube, and TikTok. CEO Fernandez explained, "This allows us to obtain a lot of information that regular banks usually cannot use," citing examples such as location data of where freelance delivery workers worked, how much they earned per job, customer ratings and reviews, and the rate of order cancellations."

Banquishy analyzes this data with AI to assess income stability and repayment ability, then identifies those qualified for credit loans and provides related information to K Bank. Based on this, K Bank can secure a new customer base.

CEO Fernandez noted, "In Korea, the rejection rate for financial products is high, but we found that actual loan repayment rates are good," explaining, "This means many people are unnecessarily excluded from financial services."

Meanwhile, Banquishy won first place at the ‘4YFN Awards,’ a side event of this MWC. 4YFN is a startup competition designed to discover promising startups, provide networking opportunities, and support entrepreneurship. The final winner receives 20,000 euros (about 29 million KRW), a free MWC participation ticket for the following year, speaking opportunities, and other benefits.