# The $443 Billion AI Lending Bias: Why 65% of Good Customers Get Declined | Carla Canino, Founder and CEO Kindlee

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/purpose-driven-fintech-6329886/the-443-billion-ai-lending-bias-why-65-of-good-customers-get-declined-carla-canino-founder-and-ceo-kindlee
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/purpose-driven-fintech-6329886/the-443-billion-ai-lending-bias-why-65-of-good-customers-get-declined-carla-canino-founder-and-ceo-kindlee.md
Podcast: [Purpose Driven FinTech](https://stenobird.com/podcast/purpose-driven-fintech-6329886)
Published: 2026-02-20T01:30:00+00:00
Episode link: https://purpose-driven-fintech.captivate.fm/episode/the-443-billion-ai-lending-bias-why-65-of-good-customers-get-declined
Audio file: https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/57e23e1a-1453-433b-b012-79f648c9b4e5.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/purpose-driven-fintech-6329886/episodes/the-443-billion-ai-lending-bias-why-65-of-good-customers-get-declined-carla-canino-founder-and-ceo-kindlee
Duration seconds: 3190

## Resource

In this pod,Carla Canino, CEO of Kindlee AI, shares with us how AI bias is costing lenders $443 billion annually and what financial institutions can do about it. Key highlights: • 65% of loan declines are actually creditworthy customers being misclassified by biased AI models • Traditional lending models ignore 23% disabled, 20% elderly, and 22% neurodiverse populations • Small banks waste $4-5M annually on operational friction caused by bias in customer interactions • European AI Act requires independent third-party auditing of high-risk AI systems • Inclusive lending models can increase profitability while ensuring regulatory compliance We also go personal, and Carla shares her journey from payments expert to solo founder, explaining how her experience as a disabled immigrant showed her gaps in financial services that inspired her to start a company that solves for these. She demonstrates why reducing bias isn't just about social responsibility - it's about capturing enormous untapped market opportunities while maintaining risk standards and regulatory compliance. Follow for more discussions on building FinTech products with customer and commercial impact and to stay updated on the latest episodes. Socials: 👉 Follow Carla Canino: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlakerstenscanino/ Website: https://www.kindlee.ai/ 👉 Follow Monica: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/monicamillares/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@moni_millares TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@moni_millares We cover: [00:00:00] The $443 billion lending opportunity being missed [00:28:00] Core question: How to lend more without losing money [02:21:00] Why 65% of good customers get declined by AI [04:46:00] The invisible customers AI models ignore [08:07:00] Personal banking discrimination stor…

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