Actuality March 11, 2008

Large western investors get interested in the Russian credit bureaus

again. According to the information, one of three leading players of the American credit histories market – Equifax

- buys the stake in Global Payments Credit Services (GPCS). Experts consider that the American company attempt to enter the perspective market was caused by the global liquidity crisis.

Several sources in credit histories bureaus (CHB) said at once that one of the three largest CHB – Equifax – acquires the minority stockholding of one of the Russian market leaders – credit bureau GPCS. According to CHB top-manager who knows about the transaction pipeline, it is conducted with an option for the stockholding increase in future.

As a source form another bureau told, Equifax stake in GPCS business after option realization will be not less than of the blocking one. GPCS Director General Oleg Lagutkin renounced to comment the situation.

Global Payments Credit Services (GPCS) was established in March, 2004 and was initially named CHB Skoring.ru. In December, 2005 it was renamed in connection with the new stockholder appearance. Now 50% of the company belong to Home Credit & Finance Bank and to the European subsidiary of the international processing company Global Payments Inc.

By the volume of accumulated histories it occupies the second place (12,1 mln) after the National credit histories bureau (NCHB) (15 mln). Home Credit & Finance Bank, OTP Bank (Investsberbank), Credit Europe Bank, VTB 24, Finance Bank, Ural Bank for Reconstruction and Development, VimplelCom are among the clients.

Equifax Inc. was found in 1899 and is the eldest among

the USA three largest credit bureaus. The company headquarters is located in Atlanta; the stocks are quoted on the New York Stock Exchange. Equifax holds information about 400 millions of borrowers.

In 2006 the company profit totaled $1,55 bln, the capitalization was $4,4 bln on March, 10.

It is not known yet, who exactly of two existent GPCS owners will share the stake with the new participant. Experts consider the most credible that Global Payments Inc.

will give the part of its stake, for which CHB is not dominant. "Global Payments Inc. is a serious hi-tech company, but it specializes in processing", says Vladimir Gerasimov, the member of Experian-Interfax bureau directors' board. In the opinion of Vladimir Maleev, the director general of the National credit bureau, Equifax coming will allow GPCS to improve technologies and start the score service that is rather rare among the Russian CHB (estimation of the borrowers' credit quality), that became rather popular by banks lately.

Experts consider that the starting liquidity crisis promotes the interest growth to the services of credit bureaus as evaluated by borrowers' credit quality. In the opinion of Federal Financial Markets Service head Vladimir Milovidov, because of instability on the markets banks began to evaluate the potential clients harder, and that increased their activity in intercourse with CHB.

"Our foreign stockholders say that did not expect such market growth", says the director general NCHB Alexander Vikulin." It is specially seen by the results of 2007. If on January, 2007 we published 150 000 credit reports, on December it was already 1 277 000". Thus, according to Mr. Vikulin, if earlier mainly large banks worked with the bureaus actively, now "small and middle stay in a queue". In 2008 NCHB already prepares to publish 20 million reports.

Banks' interest growth to CHB services on the wave of liquidity crisis brought the market of credit histories to the new development level and caused the interest growth to CHB from the foreign investors' part. The only foreigners, present on the Russian market of credit histories, – Experian and Trans Union – work on it from its foundation moment. At the same time experts do not expect o

ther foreign players.

According to the data of credit histories central catalogue, 94% information is concentrated at five market leaders: NCHB, GPCS, Experian-Interfax, Russian Standard credit bureau and Infocredit that belongs to the Savings Bank.

"Three of them already have foreign stockholders, two other are captive and are not intended for information work, but for hiding it from strangers' eyes", summed up the representative of one bureau.