TransUnion CIBIL

Credit Information Bureau (India) Limited

File:Cibil logo.PNG
Company type	Public
Founded	2000
Headquarters	Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Key people	Mr Arun Thukral, Managing Director Mr M.V.Nair, Chairman
Services	Research, Risk and Policy Advisory
Website	Official Website

CIBIL

Credit Information Bureau (India) Limited or CIBIL is India’s first Credit Information Company (CIC) founded in August 2000. CIBIL collects and maintains records of an individual’s payments pertaining to loans and credit cards. These records are submitted to CIBIL by member banks and credit institutions, on a monthly basis. This information is then used to create Credit Information Reports (CIR) and credit scores which are provided to credit institutions in order to help evaluate and approve loan applications. Post Inception, CIBIL has come to play a critical role in India’s financial system. Whether it is to help loan providers manage their business or help consumers secure credit faster and at better terms, the use of CIBIL’s products have led to a significant change in the way the credit life cycle is managed by both loan providers and consumers.

History and origin

In the late 90s, the need for a credit information system was increasingly felt in order to enable informed credit decisions and aid fact based risk management. It was also imperative to arrest growth of fresh non-performing assets (NPAs) in the banking system through an efficient system of credit information on borrowers as a first step in credit risk management. In this context, the requirement of an adequate, comprehensive and reliable information system on the borrowers through an efficient database system was keenly felt by the Reserve Bank of India and the Government as well as credit institutions. A Working Group with representatives from select public sector banks, IDBI, ICICI, Indian Banks' Association and Reserve Bank was constituted by the Reserve Bank in the year 1999, to explore the possibilities of setting up a Credit Information Bureau (CIB). The Working Group had recommended setting up a CIB under the Companies Act, 1956 with equity participation from commercial banks, FIs and NBFCs registered with the Reserve Bank. As per the recommendations made by the Working Group, Credit Information Bureau (India) Ltd., (CIBIL) was set up in January 2000. The Credit Information Companies (Regulation) Act, 2005 was subsequently passed with a view to regulating credit information companies and facilitating efficient distribution of credit and for matters concerned or incidental to it.

Functioning of CIBIL

For credit grantors to gain a complete picture of the payment history of a credit applicant, they must be able to gain access to the applicant's complete credit record that may be spread over different institutions. CIBIL collects commercial and consumer credit-related data and collates such data to create and distribute credit reports to its Members which are credit institutions and banks in India. CIBIL’s over 900 strong member base includes all leading public & private sector banks, financial institutions, non-banking financial companies and housing finance companies.

CIBIL’s products, especially the Credit Information Report (CIR) and CIBIL TransUnion Score are very important in the loan approval process. Once the loan provider has decided which set of loan applicants to evaluate, it analyzes the CIR / Score in order to determine the applicant’s eligibility. Eligibility basically means the applicants ability to take additional debt and repay additional outflows given their current commitments. Post completion of these first 2 steps the loan provider will request for the applicants income proof and other relevant documents in order to finally sanction the loan.

The CIR and Credit Score not only help loan providers identify consumers who are likely to be able to pay back their loans, but also help them to do this more quickly and economically. This translates into faster loan approvals for consumers. An individual with a higher credit score can bargain with the credit institution for better lending terms, since he is perceived as a responsible borrower. Since consumers can now access their Credit Scores and CIRs directly from CIBIL, they can see for themselves how they are perceived by loan providers before taking a loan. Hence, CIBIL empowers both loan providers and individuals to see their financial and credit history more clearly and hence, take better and more informed decisions.

Divisions

CIBIL houses credit histories on over 220 million trades across individuals and businesses, organised into two divisions : Consumer Bureau and Commercial Bureau.

The Consumer Bureau was launched in 2004 with 4 million records, and now maintains more than 260 million records.

The Commercial Bureau was launched in 2006 with 0.7 million records, and now maintains more than 12 million records.

Security Standards

CIBIL is ISO 27001:2005 certified- the most recognized security standard in the world. CIBIL is one of the 1000 companies in the world, which have achieved ISO 27001 certification, and one of the first few in India.

Technical Partners

TransUnion International- a leading global credit bureau with presence in over 30 countries.

Dun and Bradstreet- a leading global provider of credit information and insights on businesses.

Shareholding Pattern

14 entities including TransUnion, leading banks and financial institutions hold a stake in CIBIL. The details are as follows :

• TransUnion International Inc 27.5%
• ICICI Bank Ltd 10%
• State Bank of India 10%
• Bank of Baroda 5%
• Bank of India 5%
• Central Bank of India 5%
• Punjab National Bank 5%
• Union Bank of India 5%
• HSBC 5%
• Standard Chartered Bank 5%
• Indian Overseas Bank 5%
• Citicorp Finance India Ltd 5%
• HDFC 5%
• Sundaram Finance Ltd 2.5%

TransUnion CIBIL Score and Credit Information Report

Along with TransUnion, CIBIL issues a 3-digit credit score and Credit Information Report(CIR) which is used extensively by banks and lending insitutions in India. CIBIL score ranges from 300 to 900 and indicates credit worthiness of the individual. A person with good credit background would have a higher score. Often lenders prefer those with CIBIL score more than 700.

CIR is also used by lenders in their loan approval decision when a borrower approaches them. It has various sections throwing light on the individual's past credit and repayment behaviour.

Since April 2011, individuals who have borrowed before or have a credit card can seek information on their credit score from CIBIL for a fee. Banks keep updating their credit records with CIBIL which uses them to work on the score.

External Reference

• Official Website
• CIBIL FAQ's
• Reserve Bank of India
• CIBIL Kick starts operations
• 'Fraud repository will help banks'
• AccessFinance