Press Release
April 15, 2011

CREDIT BUREAU KEY TO INCLUSIVE GROWTH - ANGARA

A Philippine credit bureau will unlock much needed financing for small entrepreneurs, farmers and consumers, giving the impetus to have it up and running immediately, urged Sen. Edgardo J. Angara.

"Millions of Filipino employees and entrepreneurs experience difficulty in obtaining credit because banks are rightfully wary of their lack of credit history. As a result, high interest rates are imposed on them to compensate for perceived high risks," Angara said on Friday during his keynote speech at the 30th National Credit Congress organized by the Credit Management Association of the Philippines.

Angara authored the Credit Information System Act of 2008, which established the Central Credit Information Corp. (CICC). This will gather and consolidate credit information from banks, credit card companies and government financial institutions into a centralized databank. The database will serve as a common storehouse which both consumers and financial institutions can access to facilitate smoother credit transactions.

However, the CICC is yet to be fully functional more than two years after the law was passed. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) issued the implementing rules last year and the members of the board have been identified. However, the president of the CICC is yet to be named.

"I hope the government realizes the urgency to finally implement this important law which will certainly strengthen our capital markets," Angara stressed.

He said credit is badly needed to spur growth in the countryside, and called on the industry to help make this happen.

Angara explained, "Microfinance, micro-agri loans, micro-insurance -- these are the emerging needs in our countryside. When we push for inclusive growth, we also have to advocate for inclusive finance to ensure that our rural folks also cash in on the benefits of progress."

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