An agreement was signed in Mumbai on Wednesday between ECGC and D&B India --a 100 per cent subsidiary of D&B-- enabling ECGC to sell through its branch network in India, D&B's business information reports, country risk assessment reports, international risk and payment review and global export market locators.

"ECGC provides mainly export credit insurance to the exporters through its 27 branches spread across the country and this is a diversification for ECGC in line with its stated objective of providing export related trade services," ECGC chairman and managing director B B Sharma said, adding that the export credit majordecided to offer the information database due to insistent demand from exporters.

"This service would enable any business entity to approach ECGC for buying credit information reports on prospective buyers/sellers abroad--for a nominal sum," he said, adding that financial institutions and banks can also avail of the information.

D&B (ASEAN and South Asia) vice-president and managing director David Emery said, "D&B operates in 40 countries worldwide and maintains database on 53 million companies globally. Its worlwide turnover is almost $2 billion per annum, while in India it has projected a revenue of $ 2 million for this fiscal from its seven offices in the country."

He added that the company will focus on developing business risk index and corporate ratings etc, particularly for small and unlisted companies.

"The D&B reports will be sold at a commission basis by the ECGC, at D&B's original prices," Emery said, adding that the reports have information culled from market/management interviews andpublic information; "these third party investigative reports will not reveal any sensitive information and no information will be sought from D&B's sister concern, Moody's."

"D&B Business Information Report contains essential financial and non-financial information to facilitate informed business decisions especially for penetrating existing markets and identifying new ones," Emery said.

ECGC has also decided to use its information database of around 1,40,000 buyers worldwide for the benefit of its clients, apart from using it for underwriting purposes.