FICO appoints Eric Lapin to head Scores business

Fair Isaac Corp. (FICO) has appointed Eric Lapin as vice president and head of strategy and market intelligence for its Scores business, bringing aboard a financial services executive with experience across banking, capital markets, mortgage lending, title insurance, fintech and credit analytics.

Lapin announced the move Monday morning on LinkedIn, confirming to HousingWire that it is his first day at the company.

“My career has run through banking, capital markets, mortgage, title, fintech, and credit analytics, and the thread running through all of it has been the same: the quality of the underlying signal determines the quality of every decision built on top of it,” Lapin wrote in his post.

“Mortgage, auto, and consumer credit decisions, securitization structures, and the institutional capital flowing through those markets all depend on whether the credit signal at the center holds up through a full cycle. FICO is that signal.”

In a statement given to HousingWire, Lapin said he will focus on market trends, competitive intelligence, industry engagement, and “the evolving role of credit analytics across lending and capital markets” in the new role.

“It’s an important time as score modernization, and alternative data, reshape risk assessment and expand access to credit, he said. “Given FICO’s central role in helping the financial ecosystem make informed decisions, these conversations are more important than ever.”

Lapin’s post said that FICO is “advancing score evolution, alternative data integration, and the transparency that investors, insurers, lenders, rating agencies, and regulators need as the market modernizes.”

Before joining FICO, Lapin held various mortgage finance, capital markets, credit analytics and financial technology roles, including leadership roles at FormFree, Old Republic Title, Black Knight, Altisource, First American and Credit Suisse.

The appointment comes as the credit scoring industry undergoes significant change. Federal housing regulators have recently taken steps to expand the use of alternative credit-scoring models in mortgage

In a joint announcement in April, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Scott Turner announced plans to adopt FICO 10T and VantageScore 4.0 for Federal Housing Administration (FHA) loans.

Meanwhile, Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte unveiled a pilot allowing lenders to use VantageScore 4.0 for loans sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, with future implementation of FICO 10T and a revised pricing grid tied to the new credit models.

FICO remains the dominant provider of credit scores used throughout the U.S. lending system, particularly in mortgage finance.