Linking Bank for
Credit Application

Focused on streamlining the credit application flow for small businesses in the United States.

Company

Vaya Technologies Inc.

Industry

Fintech

Focus Area

UI/UX Design
Product Strategy
Product Design
Product Management

Problem statement

Our credit application process had a 70% drop-off rate at the step where users were required to link their bank account. This high abandonment rate significantly impacted loan approvals and overall conversion. Through research, we identified key friction points:

Business context

At Vaya, we provide an embeddable credit application system—a white-label solution that seamlessly integrates with marketplaces, enabling small businesses to access credit quickly and easily. The application flow typically takes 3-4 minutes in a happy flow

Understanding the problem

We conducted one-on-one user interviews to understand their hesitations and struggles. Key concerns that emerged included:
‍

Uncertainty about which bank account to use (“Should I link my business or personal account?”).
Fear of rejection after linking (“What if I connect my bank but don’t get an offer?”).
Trust concerns about security and privacy (“Is it safe to share my banking details?”).
Lack of clarity on how to connect a bank (“I don’t know what steps to follow.”).
Limited access to online banking (“I don’t have net banking credentials.”).
Bank availability issues (“I can’t find my bank in the list.”).
Delays with manual account verification:
If users entered their bank details manually, it took 3-4 days to verify, leaving them unsure if they would receive a loan offer.
This uncertainty often led to abandonment.
It turns out that a whopping 83% of the 31m small businesses in America don’t have any employees at all. And most of the businesses are women owned and run by minorities

Solutions

Improved Communication & UX Writing‍

Added a pre-step explainer before users started the bank linking process.
Clearly communicated why linking a bank is required and how their data remains secure.
Used trust signals (bank logos, security badges, FAQs) to reduce hesitation.
Enhanced email & in-app messaging to reassure users at every step.

Engineering Fix: Added a Backup Banking Partner

Integrated an additional banking provider (MoneyKit) to act as a fallback option when users faced errors with the primary provider (Plaid).
If a user’s bank wasn’t found or failed due to a server issue, they were automatically switched to the backup option, reducing friction.

Giving Users More Control

Allowed users to link multiple bank accounts upfront, increasing their chances of getting a better loan offer.
Introduced a “Want a better offer?” step that let users add more financial details later if they didn’t like the initial offer.
For manual bank linking, we provided real-time status updates on verification progress.

Impact

Drop-off rate reduced from 70% to 20%, improving application completion rates.

40% users linked multiple bank accounts, enabling better underwriting and personalized loan offers, leading to higher conversions from offer generation to loan creation.
Marketplaces benefited from separate underwriting and deposit accounts, ensuring smooth credit disbursement directly into marketplace-managed/wallet accounts.