A Credit Information Company (CIC) is an organization which collects and analyses credit and loan related data about individuals and companies and generates its products and services on the basis of this data. This data is provided to CICs by their member banks and other financial institutions.
Based on the data of the individuals, a Credit Information Company prepares a Credit Information Report and a Credit Score. Based on the data of the companies, a Credit Information Company prepares a Company Credit Report (CCR).
When an individual applies for a loan/credit with a lender such as a bank or Non-Banking Financial Company etc., the lender contacts their Credit Information Company to get the Credit Score and Credit Information Report of the applicant-borrower. A Credit Score and a Credit Information Report about the borrower helps the lender in deciding whether to grant the borrower the loan or not as these reports predict the ability of the applicant-borrower to repay their loan/credit back to the lender.
Credit Information Companies are also known as Credit Bureaus in India. They were licensed to work in the country under the Credit Information Companies (Regulation) Act, 2005 by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
List of Credit Information Companies in India
There are four well-recognized credit information companies in India as of date, they are:
1. CIBIL
Now known as TransUnion CIBIL Limited, CIBIL previously known as Credit Information Bureau (India) Limited came into existence in August, 2000 in the financial capital of India, Mumbai. Launched as India’s first Credit Bureau, CIBIL came into consumer operations in 2004 and into commercial credit operations in 2006.
Ever since they launched their Credit Score called CIBIL Score in 2007, they have grown to an approximate 2400-member strong base which consists of various banks and non-banking financial companies. In 2011, they made their CIBIL Score available to individual consumers too. Now working in conjunction with TransUnion International (a worldwide credit bureau) and Dun and Bradstreet (an international provider of credit information), CIBIL has credit records of more than 550 million individuals and businesses.
CIBIL Credit Score and CIBIL Credit Report are available at CIBIL’s website for individual consumers. To obtain CIBIL Credit Report, an individual can log onto the CIBIL website and fill in the required details in the online form to validate the transaction. The individual can then expect his/her credit score and report on his/her registered email id.
A CIBIL Credit Information Report with your Credit Score is free and available at https://www.cibil.com/freecreditscore/. Along with this free credit report and free credit score, you can avail your annual credit report at CIBIL’s website too.
If you are unable to authenticate your transaction online, you can send the required form and documents to CIBIL office through post. You will then receive a copy of your requested CIBIL score and report in mail.
2. EQUIFAX:
Equifax, founded in 1899, Atlanta, USA as Retail Credit Company is a Credit Information Company which is one of the oldest in the world. Equifax listed its services in India, significantly later than CIBIL, in the year 2010 under the name Equifax Credit Information Services Private Limited (ECIS). Equifax India is a combined-venture of Equifax Inc., USA and 7 primary financial institutions of India. These organizations are State Bank of India (SBI), Bank of Baroda (BoB), Bank of India (BoI), Union Bank of India (UBI), Kotak Mahindra Prime Limited (KMPL), Religare Finvest Limited (RFL) and Sundaram Finance Limited (SFL).
Equifax India’s objective is to organize, consolidate, examine and infer the demographic and credit/loan repayment information of millions of India’s consumers. Equifax has recorded an incredible growth in India by assimilating millions of financial data record of individual consumers and businesses.
Through Equifax’s data, individual consumers can manage their financial profile too. The company makes available its credit report along with the credit score for free at http://www.equifax.co.in/consumer/forms/credit_report/en_in . You can also contact Equifax at their consumer service email id: ecissupport@equifaxindia.com and download their app for a Full Free Credit Report (FFCR) through http://www.equifax.co.in/process-note/en_in .
3. EXPERIAN:
Officially known as Experian Credit Information Co., the company generates credit reports for individual consumers and provides other credit and loan related services too. Experian commenced its Indian operations in the year 2006 and has been included in the Forbes list of the world’s most innovative companies.
Experian provides the following services to its customers: Evaluating a consumer’s credit risk, customer acquisition, preventing credit and loan fraud, business information report, CrossCore, customer management, analysing credit marketing, payment processing and validation, debt collection and recovery, credit risk management and other loan and credit related services.
Experian has two companies in India: Experian Credit Information Company of India Private Ltd-a joint venture of GUS Holdings BV (Netherlands) and eight prominent Indian banks and Experian Services India (Private Limited)- an Indian subsidiary organization of GUS Treasury Services B.V., Netherlands.
Through Experian, a consumer’s credit information report is available to a lender who is doing a credit-check on the consumer. The Experian CIR gives a comprehensive run-through of a consumer’s credit/loan records to the accessor. The Credit Score generated by Experian is a numerical figure which represents a consumer’s financial profile. The greater the credit score, the better! The Experian Credit Score represents the probability of a consumer paying back his loan and/or credit.
An Experian Credit Information Report (CIR) has data related to your credit accounts and credit enquiries. It contains thorough details of your credit/loan history including info about your identity, expenditures, loans/credit accounts/cards, current enquiries etc. An Experian CIR is an accumulation of your credit history. Experian Credit Score generally ranges from 300 – 850. It is available for free here: https://consumer.experian.in/ECV-OLN/#/experianHome
Experian has over 30 years of experience in providing credit solutions through the assessment of bureau data provided through its bureau members. The financial information of a consumer is provided to Experian by its members, i.e. banks, non-banking financial companies and other financial organizations. It is recommended to keep an eye on your updated Experian CIR to avoid fraud and identity theft. An Experian CIR is updated as and when the company receives consumer data from its members.
A good Experian Credit Score can help you in getting lower interest rates on credit cards, premiums and other relevant contracts. If you believe, there is a discrepancy in your CIR then you can contact Experian for dispute handling. To maintain a good Experian Credit Score and Credit Information Report you should review your CIR regularly, make payments on-time and avoid making frequent credit enquiries etc.
4. CRIF High Mark Credit Information Services:
CRIF High Mark was formerly known as High Mark. It was established in 2007 in India. It received its certificate of registration to operate as a Credit Bureau in the year 2010. Then, in the year 2014, CRIF took over High Mark. CRIF is a well-known financial services brand across the world known for its services to banks and financial institutions. Its member base includes more than sixty-three hundred banks and forty-four thousand companies.
CRIF High Mark is known to provide its services to a wide array of companies, serving Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, commercial and retail consumers, debtors and grantors and microfinance company consumers. It provides its services through its website too where one can find and access solutions and services such as microfinance bureaus, consumer bureaus, commercial bureaus, business information reports and other services.
You can get your Credit Information Report and Credit Score by CRIF High Mark by following the steps detailed in this webpage: http://www.crifhighmark.com/News-and-Events/Pages/Now-get-your-Personal-Credit-Score-for-Free-!.aspx
You can also contact CRIF High Mark at this email id: crifcare@crifhighmark.com or at this no.: 020-67057878.
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