What are the top credit bureaus in India – All you need to know

In simple terms, a credit bureau is a company that collects information relating to the credit ratings of individuals and makes it available to banks, finance companies, etc.

A credit agency keeps track of borrowers’ credit histories to compile credit reports and ratings. Financial institutions buy this information to find out how creditworthy their customers are and decide whether to give them loans.

If we go a bit deeper, we can see that credit bureaus not only track a borrower’s credit history but their behaviour as well. Financial institutions, banks, credit card firms, and even utility and phone providers are all included in the data collection process. That is why, it is important to maintain a good credit score as it helps lenders gauge a borrower’s credibility. But first, let’s understand what are the top credit bureaus in India. In this article, we will quickly run you through the following –

Key Takeaways

What are the functions of a credit bureau? What are the top credit bureaus in India?

What are the functions of a credit bureau?

Credit bureaus work with a wide range of lenders and credit issuers to help them make loan decisions. Its major goal is to ensure that lenders have the information they need to make sound decisions. Customers of a credit bureau are usually banks, mortgage lenders, credit card companies, and other companies that lend money to people. However, credit bureaus do not decide whether a borrower should get credit or not. Their job is to simply collect and synthesize information about the credit score of an individual. This information is shared with the lending institutions. Regular consumers can also be customers of credit bureaus. They can gather information about their credit history.

What are the top credit bureaus in India?

India has 4 credit bureaus, namely, TransUnion CIBIL, Experian, Equifax, and CRIF High Mark. Along with the lending institutions, individuals can also assess their creditworthiness on any of these bureaus’ websites.

TransUnion CIBIL

Credit Information Bureau (India) Limited, or in short, CIBIL, is a credit bureau that maintains records of all the activities related to credit. It not only traces the credit-related activities of companies but also individuals, including credit cards and loans. The bureau was established in 2000 and it maintains records of more than 300 million companies and 600 million individuals. The bureau was initially founded by the RBI and later merged with the Chicago-based TransUnion International. CIBIL scores range between 300 and 900, where a score above 720 is considered an excellent score. At UpScale, we have partnered with TransUnion CIBIL to help borrowers apply to 10+ banks & NBFCs with just one application. Borrowers can apply for a business loan by checking & adding their credit score directly on the UpScale app. It is absolutely free and doesn’t impact their credit score in anyway.

Equifax

The company started its journey as a retail credit company in 1899. A credit rating bureau license was obtained by the organization in the year 2010. It is claimed to be one of the three largest consumer credit reporting agencies in the world. Besides credit reports, the organization offers individual portfolio scores, risk scores, and other scores. Equifax’s scores range from 0 to 999.

Experian

Experian is the first credit bureau in India to get a license under the Credit Information Companies (Regulation) Act (CICRA), 2005. It analyses the credit reports of individuals as well as companies. A loan repayment history, outstanding balance, and delinquencies are all included in a normal Experian credit report.

CRIF High Mark

Established in 2007 and obtained a license in 2010, CRIF High Mark is a global Fintech company from Continental Europe. The main job of this organization is to provide integrated business and commercial information and credit and marketing management services. In India the organization supports millions of lending decisions every month. Its credit score rating falls between 300-850. There are other credit bureaus like CRISIL and ICRA, but when it comes to reliability, businesses and individuals prefer to rely on the ones mentioned above.