Creditinfo Group has acquired full ownership of Latvian credit bureau, KIB Latvia
Move reinforces Creditinfo Group’s long-term investment in financial inclusion and market growth in Latvia.
London, 21st April 2026 — Creditinfo Group, a global leader in credit information and data-driven solutions, today announced that it has completed acquisition of full ownership of KIB Latvia (AS “Kredīt Informācijas Birojs”), following 13 years of successful partnership. The acquisition has increased Creditinfo Group’s stake from 51% to 100%.
This milestone strengthens Creditinfo Group’s strategic presence in Latvia and the wider Baltic region, enabling full operational control of the credit bureau and greater alignment with the company’s long-term regional growth objectives.
With full ownership of the Latvian credit bureau, Creditinfo Group will accelerate investment in the local market, driving the development of more advanced data solutions and expanding the scope of services available to financial institutions, businesses and consumers.
The investments will support the evolution of Latvia’s credit ecosystem, facilitating more robust data sharing, improved risk management capabilities, and the continued promotion of responsible lending practices across the market. As part of this, Creditinfo Group will introduce enhanced analytics, expanding digital capabilities, and new product offerings, including expansion into Business Information services, Fraud and Identity solutions, and a new generation of consumer-focused products designed to improve financial inclusion, transparency, and access to credit.
“This acquisition reflects our long-term commitment to Latvia and our confidence in the market’s continued growth,” said Satty Saha, Group CEO at Creditinfo Group. “With experience across 30 regions worldwide and strong innovation capabilities, we are well-positioned to deliver greater value to Latvia’s financial services ecosystem and support better-informed decision-making for businesses and consumers alike.”
Elari Tammenurm, Regional Director, Continental Europe at Creditinfo Group said: “We would like to extend our sincere thanks to our fellow shareholders — Swedbank, SEB, Citadele, and Luminor — for their constructive collaboration throughout the process. We also greatly appreciate the support of our advisors at COBALT in Estonia and Latvia. We’re excited about the future and expanding access to finance in the region.”
Over the next few years, Creditinfo Group will continue to invest in technology, talent, and partnerships in Latvia, ensuring the credit bureau remains at the forefront of innovation while contributing to the stability and growth of the financial sector.
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About Creditinfo Group
Established in 1997 and headquartered in London, UK, Creditinfo is a provider of credit information and risk management solutions worldwide. As one of the fastest-growing companies in its field, Creditinfo facilitates access to finance, through intelligent information, software and decision analytics solutions.
With more than 30 credit bureaus running today, Creditinfo has the most considerable global presence in this field of credit risk management, with a significantly greater footprint than competitors. For decades it has provided business information, risk management and credit bureau solutions to some of the largest lenders, governments and central banks globally to increase financial inclusion and generate economic growth by allowing credit access for SMEs and individuals.
For more information, please visit www.creditinfo.com
How Economic Uncertainty Manifests in Payment Defaults Across the Baltics
In recent years, the economic environment in the Baltics has become faster-moving and less predictable. Previously, it took 12–18 months after an economic turning point for payment difficulties among companies and individuals to appear in the payment default register. Today, this happens much sooner — often within 6–9 months, and in some sectors even within a single quarter.
Payment Defaults as an Early Warning
Creditinfo manages the payment default register, which collects daily data from banks, leasing companies, utilities, telecoms, and other businesses. This provides a comprehensive overview of market payment behavior trends.
However, not all payment defaults become publicly visible, which makes the aggregated data in the register a valuable early indicator — showing shifts in the economy before they surface publicly or are reflected in official economic statistics.
Two Waves: Companies First, Individuals Later
Based on payment default data, economic difficulties typically unfold in two phases:
- First, companies. When costs rise or customers delay payments, businesses face liquidity challenges — sometimes visible within a single quarter.
- Then, households. Initially, savings and financial buffers help, but over time, pressure reaches individuals, leading to unpaid bills.
In other words, a rise in company payment defaults often serves as an early warning that the economy is entering a more difficult phase.
Three Countries, Three Speeds
While overall trends are similar across the Baltic countries, shaped by global economic developments, the pace and timing differ:
- Estonia tends to see payment defaults appear more quickly after economic challenges emerge, but both companies and individuals also recover and repay debts faster than elsewhere in the Baltics.
- Latvia shows greater seasonality in debt repayment and reporting across certain sectors compared to its neighbors.
- Lithuania tends to experience risks materializing into payment defaults later than the other Baltic states — reflecting higher resilience — but once defaults occur, they persist longer, meaning problems take more time to resolve.
Which Sectors Show Changes First?
The most sensitive sectors include:
- Construction, where rising costs and changes in financing conditions have an immediate impact.
- Transport, logistics, and wholesale, which quickly feel shifts in the rhythm of the economy.
- Retail and services, where payment difficulties emerge as consumer purchasing power declines.
What Does This Mean for Businesses?
As the economy changes faster than before, annual risk assessments are no longer enough. Companies that regularly use payment default data in evaluating partner and customer credit risk can respond more quickly — by adjusting credit limits, updating terms, or planning sales volumes more realistically.
The era when risks evolved over years is over — today, success belongs to those who spot changes first and adapt fastest.
In Summary
In the Baltics, economic and credit risks now shift quarter by quarter, not year by year. Companies that use payment default data as early warning signals can keep a close eye on their business environment — and stay one step ahead of the market.
Webinar: Baltic Market Overview
Register and join Jekaterina Rojaka, COO Creditinfo Lietuva , as she hosts another session on the Baltic market overview.
During this session, you will get the latest updates on the following:
- Improving sentiments – will it strengthen economic growth?
- Rising interest rates – what is the impact on the market?
- Sectoral perspective – losers and winners
Please complete the registration form below to receive the event link. The session will be in English – http://ow.ly/MSjh50NHVVX
Kredītinformācijas Birojs and Citadel Bank Sign an Agreement to make It easier for Ukrainian citizens to receive Financial Services
It has already been reported that last year the “Credit Information Bureau” of Latvia (KIB) concluded an agreement with the “International Credit Information Bureau” in Ukraine ( Мидрождение бюро кредитних історий ) on the exchange of credit history data of Ukrainian nationals.
Creditinfo Group becomes majority shareholder of Kredītinformācijas Birojs (KIB)
LONDON, UK, March 25th, 2021 – Today, Creditinfo Group – the leading global credit information and decision analytics provider – announced that is has increased its stake in JSC “Kredītinformācijas Birojs” (KIB) to 51%, becoming the majority shareholder.
Earlier this month, the US private equity fund Levine Leichtman Capital Partners (LLCP) became the majority shareholder of Creditinfo Group. As the result of that transaction, the share capital of the KIB joint stock company was increased, with ABLV Bank selling its shares.
The other shareholders of the company, including the leading Latvian commercial banks; AS Swedbank, AS SEB banka, AS Luminor Bank, and AS Citadele banka will remain unchanged and will continue to support KIB by serving on the Supervisory Board of the joint stock company.
Jānis Timmermanis, Chairman of the Board of KIB: “This investment is an important confirmation of the company’s potential to continue to grow despite being a relatively young entity and offer lenders throughout the Baltic region modern solutions with scoring and decision capabilities while also enabling prevention of money laundering.”
Brynja Baldursdóttir, Director of Global Markets Creditinfo Nordics: “This announcement marks a significant milestone for Creditinfo and consolidates our presence in the Baltics as a leader in providing Decision-as-a-service solutions – a key component of the Credit Bureau system. With international knowledge and local market support, Creditinfo solutions are setting a high bar wherever they are implemented.”
KIB was founded in May 2013 and is the first licensed credit information bureau in Latvia. KIB helps banks and financial institutions to manage credit risk and apply best practices in risk management and credit operations. Its activities in the field of data processing are licensed and supervised by the State Data Inspectorate.
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About Creditinfo
Founded in 1997 and headquartered in Reykjavik, Iceland, Creditinfo is a global provider of credit information and risk management solutions. As one of the fastest growing companies in its field, Creditinfo facilitates access to finance through intelligent information, software and analysis solutions.
With more than 33 credit bureaus today, Creditinfo has the largest presence in credit risk management worldwide, with significantly greater influence than competitors. For decades, it has provided business information, risk management and credit bureau solutions to major lenders, governments and central banks around the world to increase financial inclusion and create economic growth by giving SMEs and individuals access to credit.
Media Contact:
Matt Silver
Babel Agency for Creditinfo Group creditinfo@babelpr.com
+44 (0)7769 266 452
Kredītinformācijas Birojs – KIB (Credit Information Bureau) unveils new scorecard for consumers
After intense work that lasted the past several months, Kredītinformācijas Birojs finally introduced a new statistical model that forecasts the borrower’s credit risk, last month. The new credit rating predicts the probability that a borrower will default on their credit obligations for more than 60 days in the next 12 months, with the amount of obligation being at least EUR 150.
