The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank (ECCB) forges ahead with the implementation of a Credit Bureau to facilitate the ease of accessing credit by the people of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU).
Speaking on this week’s episode of ECCB Connects, Bank Examiner, Lydia Blanchard, explained that a credit bureau is a credit reporting institution that collects credit information from a variety of sources (financial and non-financial institutions), essentially creating a centralised depository of consumers’ credit history.
Blanchard highlighted some of the benefits of implementing such an important institution including the alleviation of the long and tedious process experienced by borrowers and lenders when seeking to obtain a credit history report from lending institutions. The presence of a credit bureau, where this information will be centralised and easily accessible, will save time and create efficiencies in the entire loan application process.
Blanchard outlined some of the precursors necessary for the successful operation of the Credit Bureau, which include confidentiality and security of customer information and customer consent to access information. She notes that security is a top priority enshrined in the credit reporting legislation which comprises the Credit Reporting Act and other supporting regulations. The ECCU Credit Bureau will be launched in December 2022.
The ECCB is as useless as a mole on the butt. What really is the function of the ECCB? Does it do anything to counter inflation when an economic recession is looming or has it ever intervened and stimulated the economy when faced with stagflation? The ECCB should perform its job as required by most central banks and leave the simple task of credit bureau reports to a non-profit entity.