RBAP forges data-sharing deal with TransUnion

CEBU, Philippines —  The Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines (RBAP) has moved to further strengthen its members’ credit information network in partnership with information solutions provider, TransUnion.

As a global risk and information solutions, TransUnion works on a data-sharing model and provides consumer reports, risk scores, analytical services, and deciding capabilities exclusively to member businesses.

Part of the partnership is for RBAP to contribute information to consumer credit files that will enable higher levels of financial inclusion, as well as help strengthen the banking system and act as a driver for economic growth.

The data-sharing partnership with TransUnion, which will see a greater number of lenders contributing information to consumer credit reports, is expected to help RBAP members further enhance their consumer offering.

For years, rural banks have served as the main access point for basic financial services for a large number of Filipinos, providing deposit and credit facilities to communities in which they operate.

With credit information sharing including positive information on payments that Filipinos are successfully maintaining, consumers will potentially have access to new or additional loans as rural banks become better able to manage risk and assess a consumer’s creditworthiness, said former RBAP President Dr. Armando Bonifacio.

“Our partnership with TransUnion will help facilitate an increase in business coming into rural banks. By using data-based, analytics-driven solutions, we expect the volume of lending to grow as the decision-making process becomes more fluid. Ultimately, this will have a positive impact on the bottom line of each member rural bank. For RBAP, the partnership continues to make true to the promise that the Association made to its members - Walang iwanan (No one is left behind.),” he added.

TransUnion president and chief executive officer (CEO) Pia Arellano said that the availability of accurate and more extensive credit information is an important catalyst to an efficient credit ecosystem which can help fuel and support further economic growth.

“Providing rural banks with a more complete picture of a person’s creditworthiness helps open up more financial possibilities, giving consumers access to credit that might have been inaccessible to them before this partnership,” she noted.

“When lenders utilize more complete credit information, it enables them to make more informed lending decisions – benefitting them and the consumers they serve.

According to Arellano, TransUnion prides itself on using ‘Information for Good’ and this new partnership has the potential to benefit consumers, businesses, and the Philippine economy as a whole.

The collaboration will open up the possibility of new lines of credit for much-needed investment and a wealth of other opportunities.

TransUnion’s comprehensive suite of solutions and its commitment to data quality standards will also help protect Filipinos from fraud by helping validate and check genuine applications for new financial products.

“Rural banks are, by design, champions of financial inclusion. Our partnership with RBAP is a huge milestone as it will only strengthen that mandate and allow rural bankers to address modern challenges through the power of information. In the end, all of it supports our own efforts at expanding Filipinos’ access to credit and making sure that economic growth is inclusive,” continued Arellano.

At present RBAP has over 400 members across the country.

TransUnion is a private comprehensive credit bureau in the Philippines. It helps consolidate the credit information ecosystem and manage the collection and sharing of both positive and negative credit data.