What Convergence Research does

Convergence Research is a US-based, founder-owned B2B wholesale background screening research provider that has served Credit Reporting Agencies (CRAs) and background screening companies since its founding in 2007 in Cincinnati, Ohio. The company focuses exclusively on the upstream research layer of the screening value chain, providing criminal and civil records searches at the county, state, and federal level (including automated PACER federal searches), address history verification via SSN, OIG/SAM sanctions monitoring, and custom crime classification services to its CRA clients.

Its core platform is Tesseract, a proprietary software system that reads county and state criminal court records 24/7 using sophisticated extraction algorithms across 1,800+ automated jurisdictions, with sub-one-day average turnaround in covered areas. Supporting capabilities include a National Criminal Database with 200+ million records and 18+ million photos, custom machine learning models (for regression, sentiment analysis, and crime classification) that are retrained daily by an in-house engineering team, a custom RESTful API supporting JSON and XML integration, and a network of 300+ nationwide researchers backed by dedicated QA engineers and custom-built QA and vendor management software. All PII is housed in a SOC 1 Type 2 (SSAE 16/ISAE) certified, 100% US-based data center, and the company is a member of PBSA and PRRN.

The business model is sales-led B2B with quote-based enterprise pricing, multi-year contracts, and per-search transaction economics. Convergence targets CRAs through its website (service pages, demo request), direct phone and email outreach, and dedicated client and researcher web portals, augmented by pre-built integrations with major background-screening and HR software partners. The company reports a sub-1% disputes-founded rate and under-one-hour customer service response time as evidence of operational quality. No public revenue, funding rounds, M&A, or patent disclosures are available in the source material.

Name

Convergence Research

Legal name

Convergence Research, Inc.

Website

https://convergenceresearch.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Convergence Research is a US-based, founder-owned B2B wholesale background screening research provider serving Credit Reporting Agencies. Its proprietary Tesseract platform automates county, state, and federal court record searches across 1,800+ jurisdictions, complemented by ML-based crime classification and a 300+ researcher network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Background Screening Services

NAICS

Investigation and Personal Background Check Services (561611), Credit Bureaus (56145)

SIC

Services-Consumer Credit Reporting, Collection Agencies (7320)

akta.pro primary industry

Criminal Background Checks (National/State/County) (BPACALAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Credit Bureau Reporting & Dispute Management Support (FCRA/CRA Ops) (BPAAAEAI), Continuous Monitoring & Post-Hire Screening (BPACALAJ), Credit History Checks (Permissible Purpose) (BPACALAF), Litigation Support & Civil Investigations (Witness/Asset/Skip Tracing) (BPAKAEAE)

Keywords

• Background screening research
• Criminal records search
• Court record automation
• Public records research
• Pre-employment screening

Headquarters

HQ city

West Chester

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Background Screening Research Services: B2B wholesale research services provided to Credit Reporting Agencies (CRAs). Services include county records searches, statewide records searches, civil records searches, federal court searches (PACER), national criminal database searches, address history lookups, and OIG/SAM sanctions monitoring. Revenue likely based on per-search or subscription model.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Convergence Research provides wholesale background screening research services to Credit Reporting Agencies (CRAs), including county, statewide, federal (PACER) and civil records searches, a National Criminal Database, address history verification, OIG/SAM sanctions monitoring, and machine learning–based criminal classifications. Services are powered by its proprietary Tesseract automation platform and delivered via a custom RESTful API and dedicated client web portal.

Product overview

Convergence Research provides a comprehensive background screening research platform primarily serving Credit Reporting Agencies (CRAs). The core offering centers on Tesseract, an automated court record extraction platform that reads and processes criminal records across county, state, and federal jurisdictions 24/7. Supporting services include County Records and Statewide Records searches covering 3,300+ counties, Civil Records for nationwide court searches, the National Criminal Database with 200M+ records, and PACER Tesseract for automated federal court searches. Additional modules include Address History for identity verification, OIG & SAM Sanctions monitoring, and Criminal Classifications using machine learning for risk factoring. The product portfolio operates on a unified technology platform with a custom REST API for system integration.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• County Records County-level criminal record searches covering over 3,300 counties nationwide, providing an in-depth look into an applicant's criminal past at the county level for Credit Reporting Agencies.
• Statewide Records Statewide criminal record searches providing comprehensive overviews of criminal behavior within state lines, typically used to narrow down counties for further investigation, for Credit Reporting Agencies.
• Civil Records Nationwide coverage of civil court records from upper and lower courts, covering non-criminal lawsuits with information on plaintiffs, defendants, case types, numbers and status, for Credit Reporting Agencies.
• PACER Tesseract Automated Federal court search product leveraging advanced automation technology to streamline workflow, minimize human error, and provide seamless integration for improved productivity in federal court record searches, for Credit Reporting Agencies.
• Address History Search tool that examines public and private record sources using a subject's social security number to uncover previous addresses, alternate names, residence dates, and available phone information, for Credit Reporting Agencies.
• National Criminal Database Pre-screening database tool with access to over 200 million records and 18 million photos, pulling from county and state databases, departments of public safety and corrections, court administrative offices, and the national sex-offender registry, for Credit Reporting Agencies.
• OIG & SAM Sanctions Real-time employee monitoring service using Tesseract Data Extraction software to search OIG and SAM sanctions lists with customizable timestamps and screen captures, for Credit Reporting Agencies.
• Criminal Classifications Crime classification and risk factoring service using Tesseract Machine Learning software to instantaneously and accurately classify crimes according to a client's custom criteria and formatting, for Credit Reporting Agencies.

Quantifiable outcome

• <1 hour customer service response time
• +3 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability6 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Integrated Software PartnerscoreTechnology or IntegrationClients and researchers using partner software platforms are already integrated with Convergence Research's system. Setup takes minutes. The company reaches out to software providers to establish integrations. Partner logos displayed include brand-1 through brand-9, representing background screening and HR software platforms.
• PBSA (Professional Background Screening Association)minorOthersConvergence Research is a member of the Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA), the trade association for the background screening industry.
• PRRN (Private Research Records Network)minorOthersConvergence Research is a member of the Private Research Records Network (PRRN), a network related to investigative research standards.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Sterling: Sterling is one of the largest global background screening providers, offering criminal, civil and federal court searches alongside a broader screening platform. It is directly comparable to Convergence as both serve CRAs and end-employers with overlapping research products.
• First Advantage: First Advantage is a major global background screening company providing criminal, civil and identity verification services. It is a direct peer operating at greater scale across the same research categories that Convergence covers wholesale for CRAs.
• HireRight: HireRight is a large enterprise background screening provider with broad criminal, civil and federal court offerings. It competes with Convergence for the same CRA and employer customers and serves as a relevant benchmark for scaling research operations.
• Checkr: Checkr is an AI-native background check platform that has automated criminal record retrieval at scale. It is a directly comparable modern peer pushing the same automation thesis that Convergence's Tesseract platform embodies.
• InfoMart: InfoMart is a mid-market background screening provider offering criminal, civil and identity screening services. It is comparable to Convergence as a similarly-positioned screening provider serving employers and screening resellers.
• Accurate Background: Accurate Background is a background screening company providing criminal, civil and verification services to employers and CRAs. It is comparable to Convergence in product scope and customer type, though at a different operational scale.
• EBI: EBI is an employment background screening provider offering criminal, civil and drug screening services. It competes in adjacent segments to Convergence and serves a similar employer and screening-reseller customer base.
• Vertical Screen: Vertical Screen is a background screening firm specializing in employment, tenant and volunteer screening. It is comparable to Convergence through overlapping criminal and civil record products and a similar mid-market positioning.

Broad incumbents

• LexisNexis Risk Solutions: LexisNexis Risk Solutions provides the public records, identity and watchlist data infrastructure that screening providers — including Convergence — leverage. It is a broad incumbent whose data assets and screening services overlap with Convergence's research stack.
• TransUnion: TransUnion is a major credit bureau that has expanded into consumer and employer screening products (e.g., SmartMove). It is a broad incumbent comparable to Convergence through its consumer reporting agency heritage and overlapping screening offerings.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Convergence-Research-107402111013866
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/convergence-research

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Convergence Research