Advance.AI solidifies Philippines presence with credit bureau services

Selfie biometrics-based ID verification and compliance risk management services provider Advance.AI has announced a partnership with the Philippines Credit Information Corporation (CIC) to open a credit bureau in the country.

The company announced that it signed an agreement with CIC in this regard and the bureau will go operational in the last quarter of this year, as reported by Manilla Bulletin. Advance.ai has had operations in the Philippines since 2019, and in 2023, its services were integrated by digital and financial services app DigiCOOP for quick ID verification.

Advance.AI says it was selected for the credit bureau services and granted a Special Accessing Entity (SAE) licence following a tender process last year in which its bid was evaluated by a Technical Working Group.

In his remarks after concluding the partnership, CIC President and CEO Ben Joshua A. Baltazar said the credit bureau will contribute to efforts of developing “a more inclusive financial ecosystem to develop better credit reporting and credit scoring services, as well as increase competition and innovation of more diverse and robust credit data access to benefit both lenders and borrowers.”

Credit reporting expert, Dennis Martin, will be pioneer head of the credit bureau, according to the company.

Martin, whose appointment was announced early in the year, said the partnership will help build a better credit information infrastructure in the country, in line with the company’s “strong history of providing localised products and services tailored to the unique needs of the Philippine market.”

Advance.AI’s agreement with CIC to open credit bureau services in the country comes less than two weeks after it announced improvements to its Know Your Business (KYB) services for its Singapore and Malaysia clientele.

In a Philippines related story, the country’s ID authority has raised an alarm over a phenomenon in which fraudsters lure citizens to take snap shots of their ID cards in exchange for money.

The ID photographs are then used by the unscrupulous persons for criminal purposes such as unduly receiving cash benefits or other social protection grants from the government, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said in a statement signed by Undersecretary, National Statistician and Civil Registrar General, Denis Mapa.

“The PSA reminds the public not to share their National ID unnecessarily and present it only to authorized personnel. Your vigilance is crucial in preventing identity theft and fraud. Stay informed and protect your personal information,” the statement reads.

Article Topics

Advance.AI  |  financial inclusion  |  financial services  |  identity verification  |  PhilID  |  Philippines  |  selfie biometrics