# Alternative Lending Criteria > A descriptive term used in the financial technology sector to denote the use of non-standard data points—such as utility payments, social media activity, or cash flow history—to assess borrower risk. It is not an established standalone corporate entity but rather a methodology employed by various fintech firms. - URL: https://optimly.ai/brand/alternative-lending-criteria - Slug: alternative-lending-criteria - BAI Score: 12/100 - Archetype: Phantom - Category: Financial Services - Last Analyzed: April 10, 2026 ## Competitors - FICO (Fair Isaac Corporation) (https://optimly.ai/brand/fico) - Plaid (https://optimly.ai/brand/plaid) - Upstart (https://optimly.ai/brand/upstart)