Esusu, a fintech platform that helps renters build their credit scores, has raised $50 million in a Series C funding round at a valuation of $1.2 billion.
Renters remain largely excluded from the traditional credit system, and although an estimated $1.4 trillion is paid to landlords each year in the United States, only 20% of landlords choose to report the rent they pay. As a result, millions of trustworthy renters remain stuck in a category called “trust invisible.”
“110 million people rent in America, and less than 10% of that data is reflected in their credit scores,” Esusu co-founder and CEO Wemimo Abbey said in an interview on CNBC’s “Worldwide Exchange” on Thursday. “When people pay rent, we make sure that it is reflected in their credit score,” he said.
It’s known that paying your mortgage on time can improve your credit score, but many renters don’t have a credit history. Esusu reports regular rent payments to credit bureaus so renters can build their scores. More than 50 million Americans do not have a credit history with the three major credit bureaus: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion.
The company says renters using its system have already accessed $30 billion in mortgage loans.
“Esus is fundamentally reshaping how the financial system works for everyone,” Shawn Mendy, partner at Westbound Equity Partners and lead investor in the deal, said in a statement. “People will stand up if they are given the tools to stand up.”
Esusu was ranked 49th on CNBC’s 2025 Disruptor 50 list.
Esusu partners with 65% of America’s largest commercial real estate owners and property managers, as well as banks. Since its launch in 2016, its platform has grown to support more than 5 million rental units across the United States, reaching approximately 12 million renters and processing approximately $100 billion in annual lease value. Landlords using the company’s technology include Bell Partners, BH Management, Blackstone, Cortland, Invitation Homes, Jonathan Rose Companies, Kayne Anderson, Morgan Properties, Nuveen Real Estate, Pretium, Affiliates, TruAmerica, and WinnCompanies.
The fintech company plans to use the new funding to expand three initiatives. The company plans to expand distribution of its rent reporting API through what it calls “rent reporting as a service.” Among the latest partners in this effort, Esusu Technology currently reaches 228 million monthly active users through its real estate platform. Jiro. The company also plans to launch Esus Pay in 2026, which allows renters to pay their monthly rent in installments.
Esusu will also highlight opportunities to make rental data a more prominent feature in mortgage underwriting. The Federal Housing Finance Agency has formally decided to include rental data in mortgage underwriting, which requires verified rental and identity data. SSS acquired identity verification company Celeri earlier this year. Essus already has partnerships with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to increase the number of homes nationwide that report rent as part of their credit.
Esusu founders Abbey and Samir Goel grew up watching their families struggle financially as immigrants from Lagos, Nigeria and New Delhi, India, respectively. That was the motivation for establishing Esusu. “When we came here, we didn’t have a credit score. We went to one of the largest financial institutions to try to borrow money, were turned down, and had to borrow from predatory lenders who wanted to lend at interest rates over 400%,” Abby said in a June 2025 interview with CNBC. “My mother sold my father’s wedding ring. We borrowed money from church members and that’s how we got started.”
