China Credit Information Service (CCIS)

What Is the China Credit Information Service (CCIS)?

The China Credit Information Service (CCIS) offers credit rating services to companies throughout Taiwan and the Chinese mainland. It is based in Taiwan and is one of the chief credit informational agencies in Taiwan with offices around the world. The China Credit Information Service (CCIS) provides a wealth of other services in addition to credit rating services, including business consulting, commercial credit reports, asset appraisal, market research, publishing, and credit management.

Understanding the China Credit Information Service (CCIS)

Founded in 1961 by Paul P. Chang, the China Credit Information Service (CCIS) is one of the oldest entities of its kind in Taiwan. It opened satellite offices in Shanghai and Beijing in order to further its reach in mainland China. By offering credit rating services and other information that informs the markets, the China Credit Information Service (CCIS) ultimately provides an informational bridge between the greater Chinese market and the rest of the world.

In 2016, the China Credit Information Service (CCIS) was purchased by CRIF, a European global credit information company. In its acquisition, CRIF intends to further the work and growth of CCIS in Asia. CCIS operates in over 50 countries on four continents. Its clients include over 10,500 financial institutions, 82,000 business clients, and 1,000,000 consumers.

Services Provided by the China Credit Information Service (CCIS)

Employing over 5,500 individuals, the China Credit Information Service (CCIS) provides many services. These include risk management, fintech solutions, an online database of corporate information, market research, asset valuation, and an online bookstore that distributes regular publications.

In its overall framework, CCIS "guarantees the constant upgrading of the breadth and depth of credit information and provides qualified consulting services, assisting clients in implementing effective credit management solutions as well as evaluating and reducing business risk."

Furthermore, CCIS's focus is on "performing risk assessments, preventing outstanding debts, reducing transaction costs and investments, and speeding up market exploration." The goal is that with a large database that consists of the creditworthiness of companies and individuals, CCIS can promote safe and fast lending, increasing growth and profitability in the Asian markets.

Two of the most important and widely used reference materials in Asia provided by CCIS are "The Largest Corporations in Taiwan Region-TOP5000" and "Business Groups in Taiwan Region." These two documents are published annually.

China Credit Information Service (CCIS) and Other Rating Agencies

CCIS is the Asian equivalent of Standard and Poor's, Moody's, and Fitch Ratings, the three primary rating agencies used throughout the Western world. The entities provide credit ratings on corporations and debt, famous for their lettered and numbered rating scales, consisting of investment grade and non-investment grade ratings.

The companies also provided other services, for example, S&P is famous for its stock indexes, such as the S&P 500. All three provide an immense amount of reports and data that are used by the financial world at large. All three are U.S. companies.

There are many other credit rating agencies in the world that provide ratings and data on the local corporations of the countries in which they are based. As the U.S. economy is the largest in the world and because many of its corporations have operations in other countries, S&P, Moody's, and Fitch Ratings provide sufficient information for many investors around the globe.

However, they do not have a hand in every market, which is why the China Credit Information Service (CCIS) is such an important institution for Asian markets.