Communique on company credit report issued for business community 

Recently, the Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board organized a One day seminar for business community stakeholders in Port Harcourt. Three topics were presented under the central topic “Access to Finance”.

Among those were; prof Chris Onalo, who excited the audience with the topic “How Company Credit Report Supports Credit Approval Decisions”.

Most notable in his presentation is that potential business or trading partners are not always what they claimed to be.

Successful  business relationship lies in the adequacy and reliability of credit and business information gathered, which makes Company Credit Report a vital aspect in all business dealings.

Company Credit Report provides track record in financial management, board integrity and industry background information about a company. It covers information such as company ownership, subsidiary companies, financial and business information, and any liabilities or bankruptcies.

He further highlighted the benefits of Company Credit Report as thus:

a. Helps to determine whether the prospective credit customer will be able to meet its obligations.

b. Gain insight into different borrowing and credit granting environments to understand the risks and non-risk advantages that each environment may pose and to articulate healthy management decisions.

c. Financial, trade, business, consumer, and export credit managers can measure the ability and willingness of a borrowing company or potential credit customer to keep its obligations.

d. Avails robust access to a web of business information on the loan or credit-receiving applicant resulting in a safe and sound creditworthiness assessment, good facility monitoring, future credit recovery prospects, and internal credit information bureau.

In his presentation, he pointed out a list of those who stand to benefit tremendously from using CCR, and they include: Credit access enabling organizations/agencies, Product suppliers, Manufacturers, Banks and other project financing institutions,  Credit guarantee organizations and credit insurance companies, Credit business services providers, Investors (private and institutional), Commercial section of foreign Embassies, Chambers of Commerce and Trade Associations, etc.

Some of the importance of CCR on Corporate Governance as noted in his presentation are;

a. It compels borrower or potential credit customer to ensure audit of their business accounts annually.

b. It compels borrower or potential credit customer to comply with Corporate Affairs Commission’s regulation on filing annual accounts and returns, filling changes in company affairs, etc.

c. It compels the company to keep a proper record of all its business transactions.

d. It compels the company to keep and update company directors’ and management’s profiles, as well as major shareholders.