State-owned Credit Information Corp. (CIC) announced Monday, Sept. 11, that the application to avail of its services via the new Special Accessing Entities (SAEs) is now open.
CIC President and CEO Ben Joshua A. Baltazar said non-bank lenders can tap their services by logging as SAEs.
The 30-day application started Monday and will run until Oct. 11, 2023.
“We want to create a more competitive environment that aligns with our inclusive mandate – encouraging non-bank lenders to avail of services from our SAEs, as well as enabling MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises) and individual borrowers direct access to their credit reports,” said Baltazar in a statement released Monday.
CIC, which is supervised by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), said SAEs or accredited credit bureaus refer to “duly accredited private corporations engaged primarily in the business of providing credit reports, ratings, and other similar credit information products and services.” These include CIBI, CRIF and TransUnion.
The statement mentioned guidelines for accreditation of new SAEs, such as CIC Circular No. 02, series of 2023 or “Revised Standards and Rules for Accreditation of Special Accessing Entities to the Credit Information System”.
“The application is open to domestic and foreign entities seeking to establish and operate as an SAE,” said CIC.
According to CIC, upon submission of documentary requirements, its Technical Working Group will assess the qualifications of applicants taking into account its financial resources, technical expertise, and reputation to operate as or form an SAE. All applications will be approved or denied by the CIC Board of Directors, it noted.
“Through this development, we are looking forward to creating a more inclusive financial ecosystem to develop better credit reporting and credit scoring services, as well as increase availability of more diverse and robust credit data that can be accessed at a reasonable price to benefit both lenders and borrowers,” according to Baltazar.
CIC mainly provides credit reports or a summary of a borrower's financial transactions such as loan contracts with lending institutions, utility subscriptions and other obligations which the CIC is authorized to collect.