IE Hub and Mega AI Launch ELLIE to Improve How Creditors Support Customers in Financial Difficulty

FinTech Wales member IE Hub and Mega AI have announced the launch of ELLIE, a new AI-powered affordability solution designed to transform how creditors identify, understand and support customers experiencing financial difficulty.

The announcement marks another milestone for IE Hub, which was named FinTech Startup of the Year at the FinTech Awards Wales.

ELLIE combines IE Hub’s Standard Financial Statement (SFS) compliant income and expenditure (I&E) platform with Mega AI’s conversational AI technology. The solution is designed to enable creditors to deliver more intelligent and intuitive affordability journeys while reducing reliance on traditional telephone-based assessments.

IE Hub is an online budgeting tool that helps customers create budgets and manage their outgoings. Users can share their affordability information with creditors and set up payment plans without the need for telephone conversations.

Mega AI develops AI-powered solutions for regulated industries, including debt collection, with a focus on creating efficient processes and good customer outcomes.

Together, the companies have designed ELLIE around four key pillars: intelligent pre-contact affordability, AI-powered conversations, intelligent customer triage and alerts, and a living affordability assessment.

If a customer is already an IE Hub user, or a new affordability assessment is required, they can complete one digitally through IE Hub before engaging with an AI agent. Where customers have not previously completed an assessment, ELLIE can also guide them through a shorter I&E.

Using affordability information alongside a creditor’s own policies and rules, ELLIE can conduct an online conversation and determine the appropriate next-best action, including agreeing repayment plans and taking payment.

The solution also integrates with the Vulnerability Registration Service (VRS), helping organisations identify vulnerability indicators earlier and route customers towards the most appropriate support. This is intended to enable creditors to involve specialist teams sooner and focus resources where they are most needed.

Once customers have completed their I&E assessment, they can choose to share it with other creditors and access wider IE Hub benefits, including income maximisation and additional support.

At the heart of the proposition is a “tell us once” approach. It is designed to reduce repetitive and often lengthy affordability conversations while creating a more personalised customer experience and providing creditors with consistent data to support decision-making.

“Affordability assessments are incredibly important, but the way the industry carries them out can still be time-consuming for creditors and frustrating for customers.

“ELLIE brings together the best of digital affordability and conversational AI. Customers shouldn’t have to spend 30 or 40 minutes repeatedly explaining their financial circumstances to different organisations.

“Our ambition is simple: use technology to make the process quicker and easier, while making sure customers who need additional support are identified and receive it.”

Gareth Llewelyn, Chief Commercial Officer at IE Hub

“AI has the potential to improve how organisations manage affordability conversations. By combining Mega AI’s conversational technology with IE Hub’s affordability infrastructure and expertise, ELLIE can deliver intelligent, personalised conversations at scale while ensuring customers can always access human support when needed.

“For creditors, ELLIE has been designed to deliver a number of potential benefits, including reduced operational effort, increased digital engagement, faster customer triage and more consistent affordability conversations. For customers, the proposition is built around a simple principle: tell us once. Rather than repeatedly completing affordability assessments, customers can maintain their financial information within IE Hub and choose when and with whom it is shared.”

Martin Nielsen, Senior Vice President at Mega AI

ELLIE is expected to launch in Q4 2026, with IE Hub and Mega AI already working with creditors on opportunities to pilot the solution.