Creditinfo Group has expanded to Guyana where it landed the sole licence on offer to set up a credit bureau.

Guyana is geographically located in South America but is politically aligned to the Caribbean.

Creditinfo currently operates in a dozen countries, including Jamaica.

The Icelandic company beat out CRIF and Transunion in the process to win the licence issued by the Central Bank of Guyana.

The bureau will begin operations in mid-2013, said a media release.

"We have worked hard to achieve this and we are confident that Creditinfo Guyana is going to be of great value for the local economy," said Reynir Gretarsson, chairman of Creditinfo Group, headquartered in Iceland.

Creditinfo's Jamaican operation is a joint venture partnership with Coalesce Credit Solutions Limited.

Creditinfo Jamaica Limited, which is run by Megan Deane, has signed data-sharing agreements with 25 institutions, the release said.

CRIF SpA, an Italian firm, also operates in Jamaica under joint venture with Neal & Massy. The partners operate the CRIF NM Credit Assure credit bureau.

business@gleanerjm.com