Recorded RBI impact
Fine: Rs 24.3 L
Monetary penalty · Fresh imposition
Published by RBI
26 Jun 2023
Case Brief
By an order dated June 26, 2023, RBI imposed a monetary penalty of Rs 24.25 lakh on Equifax Credit Information Services Private Limited, Mumbai. The regulator said a statutory inspection revealed that certain credit information maintained by the company was inaccurate or incomplete, and that the company failed to update borrowers or inform them of corrective steps and reasons for delay within the required 30 days after complaints were received. RBI concluded that the violations of the Credit Information Companies (Regulation) Act, 2005 and the Credit Information Companies Rules, 2006 were substantiated and warranted penalty.
Why RBI Acted
RBI imposed a monetary penalty after a statutory inspection found that certain credit information maintained by the company was not accurate and complete. It also found that, on receipt of complaints from some borrowers, the company had neither updated the credit information nor informed the borrowers about the steps taken to correct discrepancies and the reasons for not complying within 30 days, amounting to non-compliance with the CIC (R) Act read with CIC Rules. The penalty was imposed under section 25(1)(iii) read with section 23(4) of the CIC (R) Act.
Operating Impact
The company must bear the monetary penalty and continue complying with CIC Act/CIC Rules requirements on accurate, complete credit information and timely complaint resolution. Borrowers whose complaints were pending or inadequately handled are the directly affected parties, although the release does not state any additional operational restriction.
Regulatory Basis
- clause (iii) of sub-section (1) of section 25 read with sub-section (4) of section 23 of CIC (R) Act
- Credit Information Companies (Regulation) Act, 2005
- Credit Information Companies Rules, 2006
Action Facts
- Primary Impact
- Fine: Rs 24.3 L
- Order Date
- 26 Jun 2023
- Effective From
- 26 Jun 2023
- Entities Affected
- 1
- Entity Role
- Primary
- Entity Type
- Credit bureau