ClearScore buys Acre to route mortgage demand to broker partners

ClearScore has acquired Acre Platforms, a London-based software company serving UK mortgage brokers, for an undisclosed sum. The deal, announced in January 2026, brings Acre's 47-person team into the group and marks the third acquisition ClearScore has made since late 2024 as it expands beyond consumer credit into mortgages and embedded finance.

Acre builds technology for mortgage intermediaries: brokers and lenders who work with home buyers. The platform includes a customer relationship management system for brokers and provides mortgage, property and affordability data that intermediaries use to serve clients. ClearScore described Acre as the UK's fastest-growing intermediary mortgage platform, though the company did not disclose details like revenue or user numbers.

The strategic logic is straightforward. ClearScore has 16 million users in the UK seeking financial products, and Acre has relationships with mortgage brokers who want to reach customers. Acre's platform will now route mortgage demand from ClearScore's consumer base to these broker clients, and ClearScore gains access to Acre's data and technology to improve its own mortgage offering.

Building a mortgage business

ClearScore started in 2015 as a credit score checker and financial marketplace, letting UK consumers see their eligibility for loans, credit cards and other products. The company has 25 million users globally and 460 employees across offices in London, Manchester and Edinburgh. It has raised $200 million in equity (series C+, led by Invus Opportunities in 2021) and secured £30 million in debt financing from HSBC in February 2025.

Mortgages are a new category for the company. In January 2025, ClearScore acquired Aro Finance, which offered secured loans and second-charge mortgages through partnerships with UK retailers including Argos, Very.co.uk and Asda. That deal was about reaching consumers through affinity partners; the Acre deal is about reaching brokers. Together they reveal a strategy to reach mortgage customers from multiple angles.

Justin Basini, ClearScore's chief executive and co-founder, said the acquisition would "accelerate our mortgage strategy, with Acre technology powering our home lending business and helping us deliver compelling new experiences for our users." He described Acre as a great addition that would support the business on its growth trajectory.

Multi-country expansion

The company plans to extend Acre's platform beyond the UK to South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, where the group already operates. This suggests ClearScore sees mortgage intermediation as a repeatable business model across its footprint, not just a UK play. The mortgage market in each of these countries has brokers and lenders that could benefit from Acre's CRM and data tools.

Justus Brown, Acre's chief executive, said the company's mission is to "simplify the mortgage journey, taking the pain out of the process so that consumers can get into their homes quicker." He added that joining ClearScore was an exciting next step that would allow Acre to accelerate its drive to become a leading tech platform for the mortgage industry.

ClearScore frames Acre as part of a broader effort to become an ecosystem player: a provider of infrastructure and data that multiple types of financial firms depend on. The company already offers D-One, an open banking service that helps lenders assess creditworthiness without pulling full credit reports. Acre fits the same pattern, serving both consumers via ClearScore and intermediaries via Acre's platform.

Path to IPO

ClearScore has said it is pursuing profitability and preparing for an initial public offering, though no timeline is public. These acquisitions—Aro Finance, Acre, and a third unnamed company—form part of a strategy to grow revenue before that exit. Each addresses a gap. Aro Finance brought ClearScore into secured loans through retail partners. Acre brings broker relationships and mortgage infrastructure.

The mortgage market in Europe is competitive. Other players are exploring how to use technology to improve the process for consumers and brokers alike. But few have ClearScore's combination of consumer scale (16 million users), affordability data, credit history, and now the tools to connect that demand to brokers. How quickly the company can integrate Acre's platform and grow adoption across its markets will determine whether Acre becomes a significant layer of the mortgage ecosystem.