The Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA), chaired by Islam Azzam, has issued two decisions requiring companies and entities operating in consumer finance and micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) financing to establish real-time electronic links with credit information company iScore.

 

The measures aim to strengthen oversight of financing procedures across all stages of the lending cycle and improve the speed and accuracy of creditworthiness assessments, according to the FRA.

 

Under FRA Board Decision No. 174 of 2026, licensed consumer finance companies must notify iScore in real time when financing is approved and disbursed, when customers make full or partial payments, when financing is terminated, and when the company initiates judicial or legal proceedings related to the financing or changes the status of such proceedings.

 

Consumer finance companies must also submit financing data and information to iScore using a designated reporting template within five days after the end of each month.

 

Meanwhile, FRA Board Decision No. 175 of 2026 applies the same real-time reporting requirements to companies, associations and civil-society institutions classified as “A” and “B” and licensed to provide MSME financing.

 

The two decisions require companies and entities covered by the measures to complete the necessary procedures for electronic integration with iScore within three months from the effective date of the decisions, following their publication in the Official Gazette and on the FRA’s website.

 

Azzam said real-time integration with iScore would strengthen financing companies’ ability to make sound lending decisions while improving the efficiency of monitoring and regulatory oversight of credit data.

 

He added that the system would support more efficient operations and financing decisions by strengthening creditworthiness assessments, reviewing outstanding financing, monitoring customers’ financial positions and ensuring that financing is used for its designated purpose.

 

The real-time updates are also expected to help financing providers monitor customers’ repayment obligations and manage credit risks, supporting the financial soundness of non-bank financial institutions.

 

Azzam stressed the importance of maintaining accurate and up-to-date credit data in real time to help non-bank financing companies make sound lending decisions, reduce the risk of customer defaults and strengthen the stability of the non-bank financial sector.

 

The FRA chairman said the move forms part of the authority’s broader efforts to balance the development of regulated activities with the protection of market participants through digital mechanisms and greater integration among non-bank financial market participants.