MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Credit Information Bureau India Limited (CIBIL) to Launch Credit Reporting System for Microfinance

Credit Information Bureau International Limited (CIBIL), an Indian credit bureau operator, recently announced that it plans to roll out a dedicated credit bureau for microfinance customers and microfinance institutions (MFIs) [1]. The announcement by CIBIL follows the launch of the “Microfinance Credit Bureau” by the Indian arm of US-based Equifax Incorporated, as was reported by MicroCapital in June 2011 [2]. Arun Thukral, managing director of CIBIL, reportedly has said that the details of 40 million microfinance accounts have already been collected [1]. CIBIL was established in 2000 by four corporations: State Bank of India (

), a publicly-listed commercial bank; Housing Development Finance Corporation Limited (HDFC), an Indian financial services group; Dun & Bradstreet Information Services India Private Limited, a subsidiary of US-based credit information provider Dun & Bradstreet; and TransUnion International Incorporated, a US-based credit bureau. According to Samir Bhatia, managing director and CEO of Equifax Consumer Information Systems (ECIS), “[A] dedicated credit bureau will bring more....