South African credit bureaus and how to choose which to call
South Africa’s credit providers report through the SACRRA hub, while the NCR register lists 55 records, a mix of full consumer bureaus and specialist registrants. The bureau profile you read then feeds into affordability: every instalment shown on it counts in the sum, and a decline resting on that report names the bureau behind it. The profile sets both the amount you lend and the reason the consumer reads. You have to decide whether one bureau gives you the data you need or whether to cross-check and use the best data for each applicant.
The NCR register lists 55 bureau records
The National Credit Regulator (NCR) register lists 55 records, including credit bureaus such as TransUnion Credit Bureau (Pty) Ltd, Experian South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Xpert Decision Systems (XDS), Consumer Profile Bureau (CPB) and VeriCred Credit Bureau. The credit bureaus glossary explains the term.
The register also includes specialist registrants, such as the Southern African Fraud Prevention Service. It gives you names to assess, but a registration does not tell you whether a source has a full consumer profile for the applicants you serve.
| Registered name | Kind |
|---|---|
| TransUnion Credit Bureau (Pty) Ltd | Consumer bureau |
| Experian South Africa (Pty) Ltd | Consumer bureau |
| Xpert Decision Systems (XDS) | Consumer bureau |
| Consumer Profile Bureau (CPB) | Consumer bureau |
| VeriCred Credit Bureau | Consumer bureau |
| Southern African Fraud Prevention Service NPC | Fraud prevention |
Your bureau profile shapes affordability and decline reasons
Your bureau choice affects the amount you can lend. Regulation 23A takes every debt instalment on the profile you read into the affordability assessment, so the information on that profile feeds directly into the sum.
It can also affect the reason a consumer receives. If you refuse credit based on an adverse bureau report, the National Credit Act requires you, on the consumer’s request, to give the bureau’s name, address and contact details along with the dominant reason in writing.
One source may mean fewer calls and simpler operations. Calling or cross-checking another may give you information that changes the affordability calculation or decision, but it also adds a call cost.
Apply affordability and reporting duties to bureau data
Before entering a credit agreement, assess the consumer’s understanding of the risks and costs, repayment history, and existing financial means, prospects and obligations. The NCA also prohibits reckless credit. Regulation 23A requires you to include every debt instalment on the bureau profile, maintenance and other necessary expenses, and to validate gross income using the latest three payslips or bank statements.
The NCA affordability calculation can help you work through the sum.
| Step | The duty | Where |
|---|---|---|
| The assessment | Repayment history, means and obligations. Every instalment on the bureau profile | s.81(2), Reg 23A(12) |
| Reporting | Through the SACRRA hub. New agreements in 48 hours, payment profiles 5 days after the cycle | Guideline 006/2026 |
| A decline | The dominant reason in writing, on request. The bureau's name and contact details if its report decided | s.62 |
| Before listing | 20 business days' notice, three unpaid cycles | Reg 19 |
| A settlement | Reported to all bureaus within 7 days | s.71A |
| Records | Three years, refused applications included | Reg 56 |
When a report informs a refusal, retain the dominant reason and the bureau’s name and contact details in your decision record. Keeping them with the decision lets your team answer that request from the record rather than reconstructing it later.
Compare bureau call orders on your applicants
Test the calling choices against the same applicants before you decide which bureau to sign with or which source to call first.
For example, take an applicant for whom the first source returns no hit. If a second source returns a profile, include the instalments on that profile in the affordability sum and compare the resulting decision with the first-source-only option. When both sources return profiles, compare what each contributes to the assessment and whether the additional call changes a useful decision.
Run the comparison across your own applicants for one source, a second source only on a no-hit, and both sources. Track hit rates, which good and bad applicants each source flags, call costs, loss per bad loan and profit per good loan. The data source waterfall tool compares calling options by their net value. A second call earns its cost when the added information supports decisions whose value exceeds that cost. If it mainly adds expense and does not change useful decisions, keep the simpler order.
I would keep the choice independent of any one bureau. The profile affects the affordable amount, and the bureau behind an adverse report may be named in the decline reason, so the call order should be judged on what it does for your applicants.
Put the calling rule in decision logic
Once you have tested the options, put the chosen calling order in decision logic you control. In Decisimo, you can specify REST API or SOAP web services as data sources and use their responses in your decision flow.
Set the rule for when the second source is called, such as when the first returns no hit, and define how the resulting profile informs affordability and the outcome. Return the decision with its reason.
Set legal and calling rules before signing
When you choose which bureau to sign with, make the calling order earn its place on your own decisions. Put the legal duties and the source test into one operating procedure:
- Before entering an agreement, assess the consumer’s understanding of the risks and costs, repayment history, and existing financial means, prospects and obligations. Include every instalment on the bureau profile in the affordability sum.
- Validate gross income using the latest three payslips or bank statements.
- Report through the SACRRA Data Transmission Hub in the NCR format. Send new agreements and closures within 48 hours, and monthly payment profiles within five days of the billing cycle.
- Keep the dominant reason for each refusal in the decision record. On the consumer’s request, give the dominant reason in writing. If the decision rested on an adverse bureau report, give that bureau’s name, address and contact details.
- For adverse listings, the consolidated text of Regulation 19 reports a requirement for 20 business days’ notice and three consecutive billing cycles of unpaid instalments. It also reports that a listing must not proceed if arrears are settled within the notice period.
- Ensure settlement of an adverse listing or judgment is reported to all bureaus within seven days, as required by section 71A.
- Keep application and agreement records for three years, as stated in the consolidated text of Regulation 56. For refused applications, the period runs from receipt of the application.
- Compare one source, a second source on a no-hit, and both sources on your own applicants. Choose the call order whose additional decision value justifies its cost, then keep that rule in decision logic you control.
Questions about credit bureaus in South Africa
How many credit bureaus are registered in South Africa?
The NCR register lists 55 records. They include consumer bureaus and specialist registrants, so the number is not a count of full consumer bureaus.
Do I have to report to the credit bureaus?
Yes. Every credit provider reports through the SACRRA Data Transmission Hub in the NCR format. New agreements and closures are due within 48 hours, and monthly payment profiles within five days of the billing cycle.
What does the affordability assessment take from the bureau?
It takes account of every debt instalment on the bureau profile, along with maintenance and other necessary expenses. Validate gross income using the latest three payslips or bank statements.
What must I tell a consumer I decline?
On request, give the dominant reason for the refusal in writing. If the decision rested on an adverse bureau report, give the bureau’s name, address and contact details.
How much notice do I give before an adverse listing?
Give 20 business days’ notice. The consolidated text of Regulation 19 also reports that three consecutive billing cycles of instalments must be unpaid before an adverse listing, and that it must not proceed if arrears are settled within the notice period.
Why call more than one bureau?
Because the profile you read affects the affordability sum, and a refusal based on an adverse bureau report may require you to identify that bureau. Compare sources and calling orders on your own applicants, then use the information that supports the decision at a cost your book justifies.
