No. 46 - The value of information in the Central Credit Register: estimating the economic benefits for firms

by Luca Liberati, Davide Moretti, Stefano Pietrosanti, Ivan Quaglia, Olimpia Soldato
July 2025
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The objective of this Note is to provide an initial estimate of the positive effects of sharing information held in the Central Credit Register (CR), managed by Banca d'Italia, with the Italian credit and financial system. Specifically, the Note measures the economic benefits (in terms of lower borrowing costs) for firms with a positive credit history - i.e. those that can rely on a 'reputational guarantee' in their dealings with banks. While economic literature is unanimous in identifying benefits, empirical analyses on the contribution of the public CR in the Italian system have so far been lacking.

The results of this Note show that, on average, firms with a positive credit history in the Central Credit Register benefit from interest rates roughly 15 basis points lower than when they were not yet included in the CR.

When this effect is projected across all firms recorded in the CR with outstanding bank loans in Italy at the end of 2023, the aggregate savings is estimated at €830 million per year in lower interest expenses (compared with a scenario in which CR data are not shared with intermediaries).

Overall, this Note shows how sharing the accurate and high-quality data contained in the Credit Register with intermediaries, thereby reducing informational asymmetries between lenders and borrowers, increases the efficiency of the financial system in allocating credit.

Full text

  1. 08 July 2025
    No. 46 - The value of information in the Central Credit Register: estimating the economic benefits for firms
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    (only in Italian)