The Australian competition watchdog ACCC has started to hone in on Experian’s plans to form a joint venture with several major banks.
Experian’s newly appointed managing director, Kim Jenkins opined that Australia was ripe for healthy competition and that the new credit bureau would enable lenders to assess risk and provide credit more efficiently and consistently.
Apparently the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) does not see it that way. At issue is whether a shareholding of banks in a credit bureau will limit rival credit bureaus, such as Veda Advantage and Dun & Bradstreet, access to credit data. A further issue is whether Experian would provide the same terms to other banks and credit unions as they did to the shareholders.
Experian announced several days ago that it would enter the Australian consumer credit bureau market with the help of major banks as shareholders. Experian will hold 76%, four major banks hold 4% each, Citigroup and GE Capital to hold also 4% each. Source: The Australian
