Brussels, 15/06/2009 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has launched a public consultation that will last until 31 August. It will be examining the recommendations by an experts' group on stimulating cross-border lending data (EUROPE 9733). This data will allow lending bodies to easily assess borrowers' abilities to repay and therefore reduce their financial risks. At a national level, this exchange of cross border data is already experiencing regulatory and cultural problems. These are slowing down the market's development and limiting foreign lenders' access to national data bases. When access is possible the information is difficult to compare and therefore of little use.
The experts' group is aware of these difficulties and has indicated a lack of appetite from the stakeholders for a radical overhaul of the national systems. it therefore rejects the idea of setting up an EU level central data base or aligning the national systems on an existing model. On the other hand, it calls for lenders who want access to data on potential borrowers in another member state to have access to national registers, no matter how the access models work and which respect national data protection rules. Access to this information should take place throughout the loan's life cycle or even beyond in order to authorise risk assessment and checks in the fight against fraud and money laundering. The experts'group recommends that the credit information industry develops practical solution that will facilitate the use of data by lenders. (M.B./trans/rh)