Editorials

by Rajen Kumar

No Escaping Social Media

Running a magazine concentrating on issues of small and medium enterprises and managing with limited resources is a like living life on the edge. In this rush of meeting deadlines,...

Special Reports

Apr 2012

EMRC, Brussels Associates with SME WORLD as its New Media Partner

EMRC has promoted business partnerships with the developing world and has organised dozens of business forums in key decision-making cities, such as Amsterdam, Rome,...

Knowledge Kit

CIBIL will assist you to Check Your Credit Worthiness Before You Seek a Loan

SME WORLD Bureau
Nov 2011

Credit Information Bureau (India) Ltd. (CIBIL) has come a long way since its bow in 2004. With just 13 members on board, the membership has inflated to a whopping 700 today. CIBIL may be much misunderstood body, it, however, suffers from the crisis of identity.

"CIBIL is not policing the borrowers financial behavior nor do we pass any value judgment about the credit status of the borrowers, we just keep the records for the benefit of investors,” informs Arun Thukral, Managing Director, CIBIL in an interview with SME WORLD recently. He continues, “we had a hard time convincing the bankers when the company was incorporated in 2001 and it took us three years to bring 13 members on board.”

Today CIBIL has over 700 members and its database is touching 200 million records with over 8 million alone in the commercial stream which has multinationals, PSUs etc. The credit records are helping the investors to make their strategies and planning process more viable.

Thukral says, CIBIL is, more often than not, is misunderstood by an average borrower and we suffer on that count. Educating the borrowers on the CIBIL services is a big challenge and we wish we had that kind of money to launch a multi-media education campaign. However, CIBIL is making all efforts by featuring in media discussions trying to suggest what CIBIL is all about.

“If a borrower thinks that the bank has faltered in furnishing the correct credit report, he can always tell us through our customer care desk and we do look into such cases. If we are convinced that the bank has furnished incorrect details then we also penalize the bank,” says Thukral and adds, “CIBIL is open to any borrower and we never shy away from our responsibility.”

You can always check your credit report when your loan gets rejected because of some negative information on your credit report. You need not panic! Mistakes on the credit report, if any, can be easily corrected with the CIBIL's help. You have to:

i) Purchase your CIBIL credit report

ii) Identify the wrong information

iii) Provide name, address, date of birth, an Control Number and the nature of the error as given on the CIBIL's website.

The Control Number is a unique 9-digit number found on the top right hand side of your CIBIL Credit Information Report and is generated every time a credit report is generated. It is very important to provide this number to the bureau, as it helps identify the CIBIL credit report on which you would like to 'dispute' information.

Thukral suggests that the credit report must be viewed prior to filing any loan application as CIBIL has the information of millions of individuals. Checking your credit report ensures that there are no errors on your credit report which may hamper your loan approval. Your Credit Information Report (CIR) plays a large part of the loan application process.

The Industry Leader

According to Thukral, more than India's first Credit Bureau CIBIL epitomize thought leadership and that is our greatest differentiator. As the industry leader, CIBIL provides you with risk management solutions across your customer's lifecycle. CIBIL has India's largest database of about 200 million consumer tradelines and nearly 8 million company tradelines contributed by India's leading lenders.

“CIBIL's wide ranging tools and solutions help you mitigate risk, improve customer performance and maximize portfolio revenue and profitability. We help our Members decide on what businesses to book and provide value added products and services along the portfolio life cycle to help monitor and maintain their portfolio health. We serve industries such as Financial Services, Debt Collection and Real Estate not merely in the area of risk management, but also in identifying business opportunities through profitable customer identification and engagement.

“We have already partnered with some MFIs, Telcos and insurance companies. We continuously explore new avenues for delivering contemporary risk management tools to help our Members attain that cutting edge efficiency to their credit decisions

The security of the Members' data is of paramount importance to CIBIL. CIBIL's security measures are aligned with global 'best practices', stringent risk management standards and are subject to regular audits by independent auditors. CIBIL has adopted state-of-the-art technology to provide information security. The important aspects are detailed below:

Information in our database is accessed only on a strictly 'Need to Know' basis. For example, the access to the Data Center is available only to authorized personnel engaged in regular systems and database administration.
Access control devices, surveillance cameras installed at strategic locations and biometric access system at the Data Center with the highest levels of security.
Comprehensive perimeter security solution consisting of a Firewall, Intrusion Detection and Vulnerability Assessment System to secure the network infrastructure from external security risk.
Installation of the following devices to deal with fire hazards:

1. State-of-the-art (VESDA) smoke detection system to provide early warning and isolation of potential fire hazards.

2. FM200 based Fire Suppression System to extinguish fire with minimal damage to the IT systems.

Anti -Virus software installed on all servers in the Data Center. Security patches and necessary configurations are continuously applied to the Servers and Network appliances.
Another vital area in which security is of the utmost importance is the two-way transmission of information between CIBIL and it's Members. In this regard, CIBIL uses:
128-bit SSL encryption for all Web-based transactions including FTP.
Cryptographic solutions for all information sent or received through any physical media i.e. CD, DAT and DLT

It will be a matter of time when CIBIL plays a pivotal role in the new financial ecosystem that is fast emerging especiall in the SMEs segment.

1 Comments >>

p c rajendra kumar

06 Jan 2012 (01:18:29)

plese send me the details

Our Achievements

Winner of appreciation award for promoting SMEs in India.
1st ever Indian magazine to penetrate tier II, III cities & the rural belt.
Industry Partnerships include CII, FICCI, ASSOCHAM, PHDCC, AIMA, ITPO, SME Network, Federation of Indian Micro Small Enterprises (FISME)
Official Magazine Partners for several national & international MSME events.

The Last Word

More Learned than Educated, You were!

I was speechless. Rather hesitatingly I asked him, “So, what have you decided, Sominder ?” His reply was curt and candid, “I have told the doctors that I don’t want to live life as dumb. Only...

You can also write for SME WORLD

We are looking for writers and experts to contribute original stories and articles. Send an email to smeworld@gmail.com with your story idea and lets get talking.

Some of our valued contributors are...