Homeppl

High-Level Overview

Homeppl is a London-based technology company founded in 2017 that specializes in customer risk assessment and fraud prevention, primarily for the rental market and financial services.[1][2][5] Its products automate tenant checks, detect application fraud through advanced analysis of documents like bank statements and passports, provide affordability insights from banking data, and enable better credit decisions, serving sectors such as real estate, fintech, lending, HR, and banking.[1][2][4][5] Homeppl helps letting agents and property professionals reduce fraud losses—up to 10% of assets in some cases—while approving 25% more applications, including for internationals, students, and those with thin credit files, by running over 150 proprietary fraud tests including email tracking, font detection, and metadata analysis.[3][4][5]

The company raised under $5 million in funding and achieved early traction with clients like Knight Frank, saving thousands through fraud detection.[2][4] In early 2025, Homeppl was acquired by Thirdfort, a leader in client due diligence (CDD), integrating its rental check platform into Thirdfort's offerings while spinning out its document risk analysis as Fraud Finder, an AI-driven tool for broader sectors like finance, legal, and insurance.[1][3]

Origin Story

Homeppl was founded in 2017 by Alexander Siedes in London, England, addressing gaps in tenant referencing amid rising application fraud, such as fake bank statements reported by over 52% of letting agents surveyed.[1][2][3][5] The idea emerged from the need to make rentals easier with less bureaucracy and more automation, targeting a mission to create a frictionless international economy for 1.2 billion renters worldwide by enabling them to own, manage, and utilize their personal data.[2][7] Early traction came from serving nearly 250 estate agents with anti-money laundering, compliance, CDD, and tenant checks, earning nominations for 'Most Innovative Product' and 'Supplier of the Year' awards.[1][6]

The team, representing 10 countries and 20 languages, built a diverse culture focused on fun and authenticity.[6] Securing about $1.4 million (£1M) in funding fueled growth, leading to the 2025 acquisition by Thirdfort, where Siedes became CEO of the rebranded Fraud Finder spin-out, marking a pivotal evolution from rental-specific tools to industry-agnostic fraud solutions.[2][3]

Core Differentiators

• Proprietary Fraud Detection: Runs over 150 advanced tests on applicants, forensically analyzing documents (fonts, metadata, integrity), email tracking, reaction tests, and data enrichment to spot fakes like false salary info or bank statements—unique in the UK market.[1][3][5]
• Affordability and Financial Inclusion Insights: Converts raw banking data into granular profiles, assessing 'thin-file' applicants (e.g., internationals, students, self-employed) to approve 25% more while assuming risk on approvals, boosting financial access.[2][4][5]
• Automation and Speed: Instantly automates Ops & Risk processes like credit underwriting, transaction analysis, and identity verification via RESTful API or integrated solutions, cutting referencing costs by 75% for letting agents.[1][4][6]
• Multi-Sector Flexibility: Post-acquisition, extends to real estate, finance, legal, insurance via Fraud Finder, with client testimonials highlighting thousands saved from fraudsters.[3][4]

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Homeppl rides the surge in financial fraud and defaults amid global economic pressures, where up to 10% of assets face fraudster targeting, aligning with trends in AI-driven risk management and compliance for fintech and proptech.[1][4] Its timing capitalizes on regulatory demands for anti-money laundering (AML) and CDD in property sales/lettings, plus the rise of 'invisible' applicants excluded by outdated checks—five million UK tenants alone.[3][5] Market forces like soaring application fraud and the need for international scalability favor its tech, influencing the ecosystem by integrating with platforms like Thirdfort to unify sales/lettings due diligence, reducing manual processes, and enabling safer onboarding across borders.[1][3]

Competitors like Oscilar (AI risk for onboarding/fraud) and Unit21 (transaction monitoring) focus broadly on fintech, but Homeppl's rental-specific depth and forensic document tools carve a niche, now expanding via acquisition to challenge fragmented compliance tools.[1]

Quick Take & Future Outlook

Homeppl's acquisition by Thirdfort positions its core tech for scaled impact: the rental platform enhances Thirdfort's CDD for property agents, while Fraud Finder targets document fraud across industries with AI precision.[3] Next steps include global expansion of affordability checks and risk assumption models, leveraging economic volatility to capture demand in lending and insurance. Trends like AI forensics, open banking data, and regulatory tightening on AML will propel growth, evolving its influence from UK rentals to a broader guardian against application fraud—ensuring safer, faster customer qualification in a high-stakes financial world.[3][4][5]