Financial Services Sector displays high discrepancy percentage in background screening - 16.9% in Q4-20

• Sectors like Banking, BPO, E-commerce & Logistics, Engineering & infra, FMCG, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Pharma, Retail and Telecom, have displayed high discrepancy percentages as compared to the industry average
• Highest number of discrepancies among the candidates has been detected in the age bracket of 22 to 40 years
• Employment component has witnessed high discrepancy percentages in most of the industrial sectors - especially in traditional sectors like Banking, Financial Services, FMCG, Healthcare, Retail & Telecom to name a few
• 37 out of every 100 candidates screened in the Telecom sector were discrepant which is in line with the usual high discrepancy trending of the Telecom sector
• Overall discrepancy in 2020 averaged at 8.9 percent versus 9.1 percent in 2019

MUMBAI, India, March 9, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Cases of discrepancies in the Financial Services industry surprisingly showed a higher discrepancy percentage of 16.9 percent in Q4-2020, way above the industry average of 11.9 percent in the previous quarter, as per the Trends Report released by First Advantage - a leading background screening company in India. Sectors like Banking, BPO, E-commerce & Logistics, Engineering & infra, FMCG, Healthcare, Manufacturing, Pharma, Retail and Telecom, have displayed higher discrepancy percentages against the industry average of 8.6 percent in Q4-20.

The Employment component depicts that many sectors individually like E-Commerce & Logistics, Engineering & Infra, Healthcare, Hospitality, Insurance, Manufacturing, Pharma and Retail to name few - have shown higher inclination towards alternate modes of verification in these challenging times.

"Essentials' have assumed a new meaning today. In the corporate world, Background Verification (BGV) is that 'essential' ingredient which has deep roots in business risk, compliance and data security too. With our digital initiatives driven by modern technology and alternate screening solutions, we at First Advantage have transformed our processes to adapt with the changing environmental and economic conditions," said Amit Singh, Head - Commercial, First Advantage India.

The year-end quarter has shown some very positive trends and very clear indications of organizations coping, adapting and coming out to a world with COVID-19, fiercely fighting back for survival. Sectors like Consulting, Healthcare, Insurance, IT and Manufacturing clearly depicts that the markets have bottomed out. Some of these sectors have shown much higher volumes in the fourth quarter as compared to the first quarter of 2020.

"As we continue our journey towards a product company, we are achieving success through innovative product developments and digital screening solutions," adds Singh.

About First Advantage:

First Advantage is a winning combination of searches and service that provides insights to reduce risk while improving the quality of the talent and the reliability of the renters, standing out in the tech industry as a whole. First Advantage achieves success through innovation - whether that means innovative product development or enhancement to the candidate experience. Powering this through agile transformation, robotic process automation, artificial intelligence, block chain, products for the next generation employees - monitoring, fraud, facial recognition, and many others.

As a trusted partner to over 35,000 organizations, First Advantage has offices in 26 locations across 14 countries and conducts 75 million international background screens.