EN ECB -PUBLIC  
 
OPINION OF THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK  
of 16 July 2021  
on the C orporate Credit Register  
(CON/ 2021/ 24) 
 
Introduction and legal basis  
On 27 May 2021 the European Central Bank (ECB) received a request from the B elgian Minister for Finance 
for an opinion on a draft law  (hereinafter the ‘draft law’)  and an accompanying draft royal decree (hereinafter 
the ‘draft royal decree’)  on the C orporate Credit Register  (CCR)  (hereinafter  collectively referred to as the 
‘draft legislation’ ). 
The ECB’s competence to deliver an opinion is based on Articles 127(4) and 282(5) of the Treaty on the 
Functio ning of the European Union and the third and fourth indent s of Article  2(1) of Council Decision 
98/415/EC1, as the draft legislation relate s to the National e Bank van Belgi ё/Banque Nationale de Belgique 
(NBB/BNB) and the collection, compilation and distribution of monetary, financial, banking, payment 
systems and balance of payments statistics . In accordance with the first sentence of Article 17.5 of the 
Rules of Procedure of the European Central Bank, the Governing Council has adopted this opinion.  
 
1. Purpose of the draft legislation  
1.1 The draft legislation  amends  and replaces  the current legal framework, including the Law of 
4 March 2012 on the Central Corporate Credit Register  (CCCR)2 and the Royal Decree of 
15 June 2012 on the CCCR3, under which credit institutions established in Belgium must report 
certain data concerning credit s granted to beneficiar ies to the NBB /BNB. According to the report  
accompanying the draft royal decree , the main purpose of the draft legislation is to end the double 
reporting that exists  currently  for credit institutions under the existing legal framework  in Belgium . At 
the moment , the NBB /BNB operates two different databases: one is used to collect credit data 
reported under the national legal framework and the other is used to collect statistical credit data 
under Regulation (EU) 2016/867 of the European Central Bank (ECB/2016/13)4 (hereinafter the 
‘AnaCredit  Regulation ’), under which credit instit utions are obliged to report  certain  credit  data to the 
relevant national central bank (NCB)5. As noted in the report , the information reported to the two 
 
1  Council Decision 98/415/EC of 29 June 1998 on the consultation of the European Central Bank by national  authorities 
regarding draft legislative provisions (OJ L 189, 3.7.1998, p. 42).  
2 Wet betreffende de Centrale voor Kredieten aan Ondernemingen/ Loi relative à la Centrale des Crédits aux 
Entreprises.  
3  Koninklijk besluit betreffende de Centrale voor Kredieten aan Ondernemingen/ Arrêté royal relatif à la Centrale des 
Crédits aux Entreprises.  
4  Regulation (EU) 2016/867 of the European Central Bank of 18 May 2016 on the collection of granular credit and credit 
risk data (ECB/2016/13) (OJ L 144, 1.6.2016, p. 44).  
5  Article 3  of the AnaC redit Regulation . 
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2 databases  overlaps . The draft legislation creates a framework where by only one of the two 
databases will be retained,  i.e. the one maintained for the purposes of the AnaCredit Regulation,  
obliging reporting agents to only report  data once.  
1.2 In addition, th e draft legislation proposes to supplement the data to be collect ed under the AnaCredit  
Regulation with additional data in three ways . First, unlike the AnaCredit  Regulation, which contains 
a reporting threshold of the debtor's commitment amount , equal to or larger than EUR 25 000 , on 
any reporting reference date within the reference period6, the draft legislation does not contain a ny 
reporting threshold. Second , the draft legislation includes leasing companies within the definition of 
‘reporting agents’ that are obliged to collect  and report  data under the draft legislation7, whereas the 
actual reporting population under the AnaCredit Regulation consists of credit institutions and resident 
foreign branches of credit institutions . Third,  while the AnaCredit  Regulation does not provide for the 
collection of information concerning natural persons,  the draft legislation provides for the mandatory 
collection  of data by reporting agents  when the counterparty  to credit for a professional purpose,  
excluding credit  for private purpose like mortgage credit or consumption credit , is a natural person, 
whether  acting within the framework of his or her professional activities  or not8. These provisions are 
in line with the existing reporting requirements under the current  national framework in Belgium.  
1.3 The draft law authorises  the NBB/BNB  to exchange the collected information on credit granted to 
legal entities  with the ECB , allowing the ECB and Eurosystem NCBs to use the data in compliance 
with the AnaCredit  Regulation and with other institutions in Belgium such as the Financial Services  
and Markets Authority, the Belgian Data Protection Authority and the Economic Inspection9. For each 
institution the draft law precisely stipulate s the purposes for which  data may be shared with that 
specific institution. Each institution must take the necessary measures to ensure the confidentiality 
of such data and their exclusive use for the purposes provided for  in the draft l aw. The ECB and the 
NCBs , in particular, may consult and use the communicated data in accordance with the AnaCredit 
Regulation , including for the establishment and maintenance of feedback loops by NCBs  for their 
reporting agents , provided that the recorded data and legal protection of  confidentiality are equivalent 
to those of the CCR and that they provide their data on a reciprocal basis10. Under the draft royal 
decree,  the NBB /BNB  is required to transmit all data recorded in the CCR to the ECB, with the 
exception of (1) data disclosed by leasing companies; (2) data relating to natural persons; (3) data 
relating to legal entities for off -balance- sheet commitment -type instruments; and (4) data relating to 
legal entities for which the amount owed by the debtor for ‘credit and deposit’ type instruments with 
the same reporting agent is less than EUR  25 00011. Thus, the NBB/BNB will transfer all data that is 
to be collected under the AnaCredit  Regulation  to the ECB and the NCBs , as also laid out in that 
Regulation12. 
1.4 Under the draft legislation,  reporting agents also have the possibility to access the CCR,  either prior 
 
6  Article 5 of the AnaC redit Regulation.  
7   Article 2, 3° b)  of the  draft la w and Article 3, 2° and Article 4, 3° and 4° of the draft royal decree.  
8  Article 2, 14° and 15° of the draft law  and Article 4, 4° of the draft royal decree.  
9  Article 11, §2 of the draft law . 
10  Article 11, § 3 of the draft law . 
11  Article 10 of the royal decree.  
12  Recital 15 of the AnaCredit Regulation  
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3 to the conclusion of a  credit or lease agreement either in the context of undertaking risk assessment 
on a potential counterparty or in the context of managing an agreement13. 
1.5 The draft law provides that when a reporting agent does  not comply with the obligation to collect and 
report data as determined in the draft legislation, the NBB/BNB can impose  daily penalties  on that 
reporting agent.  The NBB/BNB  is required, when  deciding to impose daily penalties , to take into 
account the sanctions already imposed or to be imposed by the ECB in the context of infringement 
proceedings concerning the same facts , and must consult the ECB in that regard. Further more, in 
determining the amount of the daily penalty, particu lar account must be taken of the sanctions already 
imposed or to be imposed by the ECB in the context of infringement proceedings concerning the 
same facts14. The explanatory memorandum clarifies that the maximum amounts and the criteria for 
determining the amount of the  daily penalty payment are aligned with the provisions of Council 
Regulation (EC) 2533/9815 concerning the powers of the ECB in the field of sanctions, to which Article 
18 of the AnaCredit  Regulation refers. The maximum amount of the daily penalty per day of delay is 
in line as well with the same provisions.  
1.6 The draft law authorises  the NBB/BNB  to ask reporting agents to reimburse the costs incurred by it 
in order to collect, record, manage, verify and disseminate the data recorded in the CCR16. 
 
2. General observations  
2.1 The ECB welcomes the draft legislation  since  it amends and replaces  the existing national legal  
framework  on reporting obligations related to information on credit granted to legal entities  in order 
to obtain a comprehensive and efficient centrali sation of granular credit data needed for national 
purposes and for the purposes  of the AnaCredit  Regulation. The draft legislation allow s for financial 
institutions to better evaluate the risks of granting credit and enables  supervisory authorities to 
evaluate the risks borne by the financial sector  more easily . In addition,  the draft legislation 
incorporates, to the extent possible,  the reporting obligations that have direct effect by reason of the 
AnaCredit Regulation with additional obligations imposed by national law  into one legal framework . 
Indeed, it is one of AnaCredi t’s key long- term objectives to harmonise reporting requirements and 
implementation practices.  The ECB especially welcomes in this respect the efforts of the Belgian 
legislator to prevent double reporting by reporting agents  in the future. It is worth noti ng that in the 
event that  where the scope of the AnaCredit Regulation is extended to include  the supplementary 
data described in paragraph 1.2 above, the draft law w ould need to be revisited.   
2.2  The supplementary data to be reported under the draft legislation are in line with the AnaCredit  
Regulation. In this respect , the AnaCredit  Regulation clarifies that the NCB s in the E uropean System 
of Central Banks (ESCB)  are allowed to extend the reporting of credit data beyond the scope outlined 
in the AnaCredit Regulation for their own statutory purposes, in line with relevant national law17. 
Further , the AnaCredit  Regulation provides that the statistical reporting requirements it establishes 
 
13  Article 11, § 1 of the draft law . 
14  Article 20, §1  and §2 of the draft law.   
15  Council Regulation (EC) 2533/98 of 23 November 1998 concerning the collection of statistical information by the 
European Central Bank (OJ L 318, 27.11.1998, p. 8).   
16  Article 22 of the draft law.  
17  Recital 15 of the AnaCredit Regulation . 
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4 are without prejudice to any other current or future reporting requirements with regard to credit data 
in accordance with national law or other reporting frameworks18.  
 
3. Specif ic observations  
3.1 In respect of the possibility for the NBB/BNB to share the collected data with various institutions, to 
the extent that it  wishes to transmit confidential statistical information collected by other NCBs to 
other institutions, the ECB w ishes to highlight that the rules on the protection and use of confidential 
statistical information collected by the ESCB  are laid out in Regul ation (EC) No 2533/9819. In 
particular, Article 8(1) of  Regulation (EC) No 2533/98 allows for the use of confidential statistical 
information by the ESCB “ exclusively for the exercise of the tasks of the ESCB ”, except  in a number 
of defined circumstances . Moreover, paragraphs 4, 4a and 5 of Article 8 of the same r egulation allow  
for the transmission of confidential statistical information within and outside the ESCB , subject to the 
fulfilment of a number of requirement s and conditions.  These latter provisions are particularly 
important when it comes to information collected by other NCBs in accordance with the AnaCredit 
Regulation to which the NBB/BNB  may have access.   
3.2 The ECB also wishes to draw the attention of the Minister for Finance to the sanctioning regime  
which applies in respect of  a failure by  reporting agents  to comply with the ECB’s statistical reporting 
requirements , and which is also referred to in the AnaCredit Regulation20. In particular, t he ECB has 
the power to impose sanctions on reporting agents which  fail to comply with the reporting obligations  
set out in the regulations adopted by the ECB , and specifically where (a) no statistical information is 
received by the ECB or an NCB  by the established deadline; or (b) the statistical information is 
incorrect, incomplete or in a form not complying with the requirement21. The ECB understands  that 
the sanctioning provisions in case of infringements under the draft law operate without prejudice to 
this separate sanctioning regime of the ECB under EU law . While the ECB’s sanctioning regime 
under the AnaCredit Regulation is referenc ed in the draft law , the draft law could usefully clarify, for 
the avoidance of doubt, that the sanctioning regime under the draft law operates without prejudice to 
the ECB’s sanctioning regime under EU law . At the same time, Article 18 of the AnaCredit Regulation 
clarifies that t he ECB's p ower to impose sanctions for non- compliance with the reporting obligations 
of the AnaCredit  Regulation is independent of an NCB's right to sanction, in line with its national law, 
non-compliance with statistical or other reporting obligations that apply to reporting agents under the 
respective national legal framework in line with Article 8(3)  of the AnaCredit Regulation.  Therefore, 
the ECB’s power to impose sanctions is independent of the right of the NBB/BNB  to impose sanctions  
with regard to the informat ion that the draft law requires to be reported that go es beyond the scope 
of the AnaCredit Regulation.  
3.3 In addition, Article 2(1) of Regulation (EC) No 2157/1999 of the European Central Bank 
(ECB/1999/4)22 provides that no more than one infringement procedure shall be initiated against the 
 
18  Article 8(3)  of the AnaCredit Regulation . 
19  Article s 8 to 8c of Regulation (EC) 2533/98.  
20  Article 18 of the AnaCredit Regulation.  
21  Article 7 of Regulation (EC) 2533/98 . 
22  Regulation (EC) No 2157/1999 of 23 September 1999 on the powers of the European Central Bank to impose 
sanctions (ECB/1999/4) (OJ L 264, 12.10.1999, p. 21).  
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5 same undertaking based on the same facts.  Further, no decision to initiate an infringement procedure 
may be taken by the ECB or the NCB until they have informed or consult ed with one another23. This 
means that where the same facts indicate a failure to comply with a statistical reporting obligation 
under an ECB r egulation and a failure to comply with a reporting obligation that an NCB is competent 
to enforce, there is no sp ecific priority with respect to the action that must be taken. This is a matter 
that must be resolved by consultation between the ECB and the NCB to ensure not more than one 
infringement procedure is initiated against the same reporting agent for the same non-compliance.  
The ECB welcomes that this consultation procedure between the NBB/BNB  and the ECB is explicitly 
foreseen in the draft law , both for the purpose of imposing a periodic penalty payment and for the 
purpose of determining the amount of the penalty payment24, in order to ensure compliance with the 
principle of non bis in idem , whereby no legal action may be instituted twice in respect of the same 
cause of action.  
3.4 With regard to the supplementary data on natural persons, as noted in the recita ls of the AnaCredit 
Regulation25, should the scope of reporting be extended to include personal data in subsequent 
stages, the protection of the rights of natural persons with regard to the collection and processing of 
their personal data should be ensured . It is important to ensure  that the appropriate measures  are 
taken for the protection of personal  data collected under the new national framework in accordance 
with Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council26. The ECB therefore 
welcomes that the draft law  provides this protection of the processing of personal dat a collected 
concerning natural persons27. 
3.5 As previously noted by the ECB28, the ECB has no concerns regarding the financing of the 
NBB/BNB’s task of registering the data that reporting agents collect and report to the NBB/BNB in 
the CCR,  as well as maintaining the CCR, as the NBB/BNB  can reimburse the costs made via the 
reporting agents29.  
 
This opinion  will b e published on EUR -Lex. 
 
 
Done at Frankfurt am Main, 16 July 2021.  
 
[signed]  
 
The President of the ECB  
Christine  LAGARDE  
 
23  Article 2(1) of Regulation (EC)  No 2157/1999 (ECB/1999/4).  
24  Article 20 of the draft law . 
25  Recital 12 of the AnaCredit Regulation . 
26  Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural 
persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 
95/46/EC (General Dat a Protection Regulation) (OJ L 119, 4.5.2016, p. 1).  
27  Article 12 of the draft law . 
28  See paragraph 3.1 of Opinion CON/2011/20. All ECB opinions are available on EUR -Lex. 
29  Article 22 of the draft law.