The Bangladesh Bank (BB) has extended the deadline for submitting applications to establish private sector credit bureau until April 9 due to public holidays and weekends.
A circular regarding the extension was issued on Tuesday.
Initially, the licence application portal was scheduled to accept applications until March 25 (Tuesday).
However, due to holidays and weekends from March 28 to April 5, the deadline has been extended to April 9, until the end of business hours, according to the circular.
The circular was signed by Rafeza Akhter Kanta, director of the BB's Payment Systems Department (PSD).
The central bank established the Credit Information Bureau (CIB) in 1992 with the aim of minimising default loans.
CIB has been providing online services since July 19, 2011.
The central bank issued guidelines for licensing, operation, and regulation of credit bureaus through a PSD circular dated June 5, 2024.
It accepts applications for establishing credit bureaus through its licence application portal.
The applicants must pay a non-refundable processing fee of Tk 500,000 in favour of the Bangladesh Bank.
With advancements in financial technology and artificial intelligence (AI) in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, new methods have emerged to assess individuals' creditworthiness.
AI-based credit assessment can evaluate repayment capacity, even for individuals who are not traditional banking clients.
This innovation has the potential to expand financial inclusion and accelerate loan disbursement.
Private credit bureaus will be able to access data from the CIB, analyse it, and determine loan eligibility, including repayment capacity, thereby improving the efficiency of the credit assessment process.
jasimharoon@yahoo.com
