In October 1997, the Polish Banks Association, acting together with a few dozens of the Polish banks, established (pursuant to the newly updated Banking Law) Biuro Informacji Kredytowej (BIK) [Credit Information Bureau]. BIK collects and shares both positive and negative data concerning the credit performance of the clients of the banks and other lenders with statutory authorisation. For some time, the Biuro was perceived as the holder of a 'black list'. It has to be pointed out, however, that this term was completely misleading. How can you refer to this list as 'black', if over 95% of its content concerns the well performing clients which gives them strong position in the negotiations with the banks.

BIK cooperates with the banks and credit unions on a reciprocal basis. It means that only the organisations which submit the information to BIK may receive feedback data in the form of credit reports. Since the beginning of its operation, until the end of the current year, the cooperating organisations received over 63 million reports including the credit history of the banks' clients. These data strongly support the thesis that this knowledge is valuable and useful for the banks' credit granting procedures and enables their officers faster credit decision making.