CRC Credit Bureau Fizzes where Others Falter – Covid Pandemic Notwithstanding

Dr Ahmed ‘Tunde’ Popoola

CRC Credit Bureau Ltd (CRC) is a fully licensed credit bureau operator with tested and trusted solutions.

The private limited liability company, led by Dr Ahmed ‘Tunde’ Popoola, has operated in Nigeria for 11 years, incorporated under the laws of the federal republic. Its solutions have the backing of Dun & Bradstreet, a world player with 180 years of credit bureau experience.

CRC provides a nationwide information repository of credit profiles on corporate entities as well as consumers, enabling credit providers to make informed lending decisions.

CRC is Nigeria’s leading credit bureau, with the credit information on 95 percent of the Nigerian industry: commercial banks, non-bank institutions, retailers, and utility service providers.

Access to the bureau’s database enables creditors to effectively assess the levels of risk associated with new and existing customers, taking advantage of technology-driven products.

CRC consistently evolves by developing cutting-edge solutions from a robust database and technology-enabled platforms to address challenges faced by lenders and borrowers.

Facing the unique obstacles of the pandemic, CRC stood head and shoulders above its competitors by launching products and services to ensure continuous lending activities during lockdown.

The CRC Help Desk, an online support channel, was launched in March last year. Individuals and institutions are able to get swift responses to their questions and challenges from support staff. The bureau also launched the Application Programme Interface (API) for accessing and updating credit data.

With CRC’s API, lenders and credit providers continued to grant loans and post-paid services via automated access to CRC’s database of some 45 million credit profiles. CRC organised online webinars last year, educating and informing the public on credit and financial topics that directly affect businesses and personal finances despite the limitations imposed by the ongoing pandemic.

These activities helped solidify CRC’s thought-leadership position in the sector. CRC continues to place value on its most valuable asset: its people. The firm invests in the recruitment, retention and development of its dynamic and talented workforce.

The CRC Team works with professionalism and efficiency. With a foundation firmly rooted in technology, staff and corporate governance, CRC is ready to take on the future and move to the next level of growth and expansion as a data analytics solutions company that delivers innovative solutions to the Nigerian financial services sector.

All good teams have inspiring leaders and Dr Ahmed ‘Tunde’ Popoola has been the Managing Director and CEO of CRC Credit Bureau since its establishment in 2008.

He is a Nigerian banker, accountant, economist, entrepreneur, and business executive. He has an extensive experience in public and the private sectors of the Nigerian economy.

Prior to the establishment of CRC Credit Bureau, he was the CEO of the Abuja Enterprise Agency. Dr Popoola is at the forefront of the development of the nascent credit reporting system in Nigeria. He has held the positions of Chief Financial Officer and General Manager at a publicly listed bank.

Dr Popoola – affectionately known as ‘Tunde’ Popoola – has earned his “Dr” honorific: he holds a PhD in Finance from the prestigious WITS Business School of the University of The Witwatersrand, South Africa, as well as master’s degrees in Banking and Finance and Economics from the University of Lagos.

He also holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University). He is an alumnus of various executive education programmes of the Lagos Business School (LBS), Pan African University, the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and the Harvard Business School, Harvard University, as well as the Wharton Business School, University of Pennsylvania, International Management and Development (IMD), Switzerland, and the Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, US.

Dr Popoola is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and seven other professional bodies. He has received recognitions for his role in entrepreneurship, business management, finance and youth empowerment, including a special ministerial commendation for his innovation and promotion of youth enterprises.