FICO cuts workforce by 15% as part of AI-driven restructuring

Oct 6 : Credit-scoring giant Fair Isaac, known as FICO, said on Tuesday it would trim about 15 per cent of its workforce as part of a broader restructuring and AI integration, becoming the latest US company to cut jobs as businesses automate tasks and redirect spending toward the technology.

"This simplified structure will allow us to operate and bring innovations to market faster and create more value for our customers," FICO told Reuters in a statement. It did not specify the number of employees laid off.

Fair Isaac had 3,811 employees at the end of September 2025, meaning the cuts could affect about 570 workers. It began notifying employees this week.

It said it expects about $27 million in pre-tax charges in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026, primarily related to severance. The plan is largely expected to be completed by the third quarter of fiscal 2027.

REGULATORY PUSH WEIGHS ON SHARES

Shares of the company — known for its FICO score, a measure of consumer credit risk widely used by banks, credit card issuers, mortgage lenders and auto loan providers — have plunged about 58 per cent this year as US regulators seek to loosen its longstanding hold on mortgage credit scoring.

Last month, the US Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) directed mortgage finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to allow all lenders to use VantageScore, a rival developed by Equifax, Experian and TransUnion, for credit scoring.

FHFA director Bill Pulte also said Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would adopt a single pricing grid for both VantageScore and FICO scores, effectively putting the rivals on equal footing and threatening FICO's dominance as the standard measure of consumer credit risk in mortgage lending.