Background
Credit Bureau (Singapore) Pte Ltd (CBS) is Singapore's consumer credit bureau. It is a joint venture between The Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) and DBIC Holdings Pte Ltd. The setting up of a consumer credit bureau in Singapore is in line with the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s vision to enhance the Republic's risk management capability.
Since 2002, the Banking Act has allowed Credit Bureau (Singapore) members, which include banks, credit card companies and other financial institutions, to disclose credit-related information to and obtain such information from Credit Bureau (Singapore) for the purpose of checking on their existing and prospective customers’ creditworthiness. These member banks and credit card companies must first be recognised by MAS.
Credit Bureau (Singapore)’s goal is to help credit providers make better lending decisions quickly and more objectively. To do this, Credit Bureau (Singapore) aggregates credit-related information amongst participating members and presents a more complete risk profile of a customer to credit providers. This helps credit providers to determine the likelihood of the customer repaying, thus enhancing their risk assessment capabilities.