Q&A

BIR is an abbreviation for the name Business Information Report.

The Dun & Bradstreet Credit Rating can be found on the Dun & Bradstreet Business Information Report on the first page under «Summary».

Yes, except entities liquidated in the official registers.

It generally takes 5 business days for changes to be seen in the Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet Business Information Report.

In order to obtain accurate information from reliable sources, Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet maintains confidentiality agreements with trade experience providers that prevent us from releasing their identity.

Trade data is reported by Trade Exchange program suppliers on their clients. A Trade supplier can not report on it’s own payment experience. You may contact your suppliers and offer them to join Trade Exchange program and report on your payment experience.

From the Update Main Menu select «Submit Financial Statement». Follow the instructions provided to enter your current financial statement details.

Interfax-D&B, joint project set up in 2008 by the Interfax Group and Dun & Bradstreet to operate in the CIS countries and Georgia, provides access to the global business database and analytical services for credit and compliance risks assessment, which meet the highest international standards.

D&B database, established in 1841, has no parallel by its volume (almost 250 mln. companies from 222 countries). It is based on the unique technology of standardization and data verification (DunsRight®), and on its own global system of business identification (D-U-N-S® number).

Thousands of businesses use Dun & Bradstreet data to get an objective, third party view of a company that they currently work with or may soon work with. You, as a businessperson, need to ensure the accuracy of the information that is being reported on your company.

You should update your information at least 1-2 times a year or as changes occur within your company.

Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet`s privacy policy and SLA can be found at www.dnb.ru/en/confidential/ and www.dnb.ru/en/tos/.

Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet will accept updates to a company’s information from a currently listed officer, principal of the business, or an individual authorized by the company’s management to provide information to Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet.

Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet receives content information directly from businesses as well as from approved and qualified third party sources. These sources can include but are not limited to: Secretary of State Records, courthouse records, vendor who report payment references and licensing authorities.

Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet collects information from various sources which include the following:

• Automation directly from the court
• Quartile reports of public companies

A customer challenges the accuracy of a filing associated to their company’s report. Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet will review and remove the filing if it is determined the record was incorrectly attributed to the company.

No. Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet gathers and enters only civil business-related filings into its database. Criminal cases are not collected from the court but are sometimes received through news sources and entered into a report as both a Special Event and a History comment.

Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet only collects business related civil filings (defendant is a business). Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet does not collect any criminal data such as felonies.

This may be due to revised ratios based on updated financial information. Anytime a report is updated, the overall credit rating is reviewed for accuracy. If a new financial statement is added to a report, the updated net worth is used to derive the first portion of the rating. Then, the financial ratios (current ratio, quick ratio, debt to equity, etc) are evaluated against the industry quartile averages. Depending on where the current ratios fall within these quartiles dictates the overall rating. Lawsuits, trade experience or working capital deficit may have an impact on the predictive analytics as well.

This doesn’t mean the balance sheet did not balance; only the condition is unbalanced. The overall condition is based on the net worth and financial ratios of the financial statement listed in the report. If the financial statement indicates a negative net worth, an unbalanced condition is automatically assigned to the business. An unbalanced condition might also be assigned if the company’s financial ratios fall significantly below industry norms. Lawsuits, overdue debt may also impact on an overall estimate.

An income statement is needed to receive a rating.

No, to assist in providing clarity around the figures published in the report we require full financial statements.

Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet’s standard turnaround time to post information is within 5 business days.

Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet will not accept or display partial figures of a financial statement.

Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet can use either internally prepared financial statements accepted by the Tax authorities or an audited one.

If the financial statement is unaudited or the extent of audit is unknown, Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet will deduct certain intangibles from the net worth.

Estimated figures will not be accepted. Only, e.g. cents should be rounded to the nearest dollar.

No. P&L should reflect the same financial period of the balance sheet provide at the time of the update. It should be noted, only fiscal sales figures will be published in the summary of the report.

No.

No.

The Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet Trade Exchange Program puts the power of Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet’s exclusive D-U-N-S®Right™ Quality Process to work for you and the entire business community every day.

Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet’s Trade Exchange Program offers the ability to share and access highly-predictive payment experience information. When businesses participate in the Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet Trade Exchange Program, they join a powerful network of data contributors providing over 1.5 billion accounts receivable updates annually, comprised of both favorable and unfavorable payment experiences. These trade experiences are incorporated into our Predictive Indicators, such as the Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet Rating, the Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet PAYDEX®, Detail Trade Risk Insight™, and other predictive scores and information available via Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet for the business community.

• Your better-paying customers will appreciate that their good credit behavior will be reflected in Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet’s scores and predictive indicators.
• Likewise, late-paying customers may be prompted to exhibit better payment behavior for the same reason, helping you to improve revenue collection.

You qualify to participate in the Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet Trade Exchange Program if in contracts with your clients there is no special confidentiality clauses regarding accounts receivable.

A/R (accounts receivable) data can have a significant impact on Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet reports, thus making it imperative that all potential trade suppliers be evaluated in a consistent manner. This qualification process is proprietary and will not be shared externally. Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet reserves the right to deny participation in the Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet Trade Exchange program.

There is no cost/fee to participate in the Trade Exchange program.

Dun & Bradstreet’s Trade Exchange Program today has more then 12,000 partners all over the world. In Russia there are more than 70 partners.

Dun & Bradstreet receives approximately 1.5 billion trade references annually. Simply download your accounts receivable portfolio to the electronic format of your choice and we`ll do the rest. Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet can accept most file formats and provides secure technologies for file transfers. You will be assigned a dedicated Project Manager and will always have an accessible Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet contact.

Step 1 – to sign Trade Exchange Program participation contract

Step 2 – to agree on A/R (accounts receivable) file format

Step 3 – to submit updated file on monthly basis (1 file per monts)

With your input, Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet will write a customized program and incorporate your guidelines and specifications to accurately report your customer’s payment histories.

To join Trade Exchange program in Russia please contact Aleksey Morsin, project leader, morsin@dnb.ru, (495) 647-78-65

Various specialized routines can be added to the Trade data processing to ensure the accounts receivable information is shown in the trade database exactly the way the customer requests. For example:

• a company may want to show an account prompt, even if it is really slow
• they may want to bypass certain accounts or select certain accounts
• they may want to place a limit on how large a dollar amount is output
• they may want to add a grace period

There are several quality checks in place:

• A rules discussion with a a Trade supplier that takes into consideration the Trade supplier’s credit philosophy.
• Paydexes are produced and published only if Trade data is submitted from at least 2 Trade partners on a certain customer;
• Information on how much Trade data is used to produce a Paydex is disclosed;
• All contracts with Trade partners stipulate sanctions in case of false Trade data submition;
• Trade partner at any time can check if it’s data is handled and uploaded correctly.

Your company’s participation in the Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet Trade Exchange Program is kept in strict confidentiality and not revealed to Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet customers when they access information from Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet nor is your company name printed in any Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet’s products/services. Trade data is kept in the system only in an aggregated form without disclosure which Trade partner submits data on this or that client.

In addition to leveraging the powerful Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet brand in your invoicing and collection process, listed below are the available benefits to you as a partner.

• Free Access to Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet`s Small Business Risk Insight
• Free Compare Profile Report
• A side-by-side comparison of the credit history you have on your customers to Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet’s payment records, allowing you to: see how your customers pay you, see how they pay other suppliers, spot collection problems before they occur and take advantage of sales opportunities.
• Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet will segment your A/R portfolio into risk classes, revealing customers likely to become delinquent.
• Gain a macro picture of the risks and opportunities in your entire customer portfolio to help reduce delinquency, decrease operational expense and increase cash flow.

• High Credit - The highest total amount owing within a one-month period on one or several invoices over the past twelve months.
• Now Owes - Total amount owing at point in time reference is provided. It is not unusual to have account amounts open and current on a revolving account.
• Past Due - Non-current portion of the total amount due or the amount which is considered late by the terms granted, as of the date the reference was reported. It does not mean the amount is still open and past due.

Corporate linkage is the relationship between different companies within a corporate family. Linkage occurs in the Dun & Bradstreet database when one business entity "controls" another business entity because it has financial or legal responsibility for another business, creating a Headquarters/Branch or Parent/Subsidiary relationship.

The information in this section is updated monthly and reflects mergers, acquisitions, openings and closings through the update. For additional details that may have occurred after the update, please review the Special Events and History and Operations sections.

The following types of company family members, when available, will appear in the new "Corporate Family" section of the Business Information Report. This section appears in the "History and Operations" area of the report.

• Global Ultimate: The Global Ultimate is the top most responsible entity within the corporate family tree.
• Domestic Ultimate: The Domestic Ultimate is a subsidiary within the global family tree that is the highest-ranking member within a specific country.
• Headquarters: A headquarters is a family member that has branches or divisions reporting to it and is financially responsible for those branches or divisions. If headquarters is more than 50% owned by another corporation, it will also be a subsidiary. If it owns more than 50% of another corporation, then it is also a parent.
• Branch: A branch is a secondary location of its headquarters. It has no legal responsibility for its debts, even though bills may be paid from the branch location.
• Parent: A parent is a corporation that owns more than 50% of another corporation. A parent can also be a headquarters if it owns branches.
• Subsidiary: A subsidiary is a corporation that is more than 50% owned by another corporation and will have a different legal business name from its parent company. There are also single location subsidiaries where the subsidiary does not have anything reporting to it.
• Affiliate: Affiliated companies are related to a business through common ownership by the direct parent company. All of them share the same parent company. A direct parent company is a corporation that owns more than 50% of another corporation`s capital stock.

The number of family members is limited to 25 each for space reasons in this report. If a business has more branches, subsidiaries, or affiliates, you will be notified. You can use Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet`s Global Reference Solution product to purchase the complete list.

Note that there are other types of family relationships that are not linked in the Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet database because the affiliated company has no legal obligation for the debts of the other company. Examples of these types of relationships include businesses affiliated through common officers or situations where one corporation owns a part or minority interest in another (50% or less).

Standard Industrial Classification codes were developed by the Federal Government in conjunction with the U.S. business community during the 1930’s. They’ve proven to be a useful tool for professionals looking to segment domestic markets, analyze customer relationships, and conduct general business research.

SIC Codes divide all major economic activity into ten major divisions. The first two digits describe the nature of this activity in very general terms (i.e. Mining, Construction, Manufacturing). Remaining digits break down these categories into specific products and “sub-industries.”

If more than one SIC Code is assigned to a company, the first one listed is the primary line of business. The remaining codes, if any, comprise at least 10 percent of the firm’s annual revenue.

The North American Industry Classification System was introduced in 1997 as a replacement for SIC Codes and now serves as the standard for the three NAFTA countries of Mexico, Canada and the U.S.

Developed at the urging of leading business economists, NAICS (pronounced “nakes”) offers classifications that more closely reflect the many new industries that have re-shaped the U.S. and global economy.

NAICS differs from SIC in that it focuses on business processes rather than on end products. It also captures many service industries currently under-represented in the SIC system.

Like the SIC Code, NAICS is organized into hierarchical classification groups that build from the detailed industry level. The United States, Canada and Mexico share the first five digits within the NAICS structure. The sixth digit is designed for country specific classifications and may differ from one nation to the next. However, the three countries have agreed to use many of the same six-digit designations.

Quickly assesses a company`s size and composite credit appraisal. For example, a company rated 3A3 has a worth of $12,000,000 - $25,000,000 based on an interim or fiscal balance sheet, and has a composite credit appraisal of `Fair`.

The Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet Rating can help you quickly assess a firm`s size and composite credit appraisal, based on information in a company`s interim or fiscal balance sheet and an overall evaluation of the firm`s creditworthiness.

The "5A" to "HH" Rating Classifications reflect company size based on worth or equity as computed by Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet. Company size can be an effective indicator of credit capacity. These Ratings are assigned to businesses that have supplied Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet with a current financial statement.

The Composite Credit Appraisal is a number, 1 through 4, that makes up the second half of the company`s rating and reflects Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet`s overall assessment of that firm`s creditworthiness. The Composite Credit Appraisal is based on Dun & Bradstreet analysis of company payments, financial information, public records, business age and other important factors (when available).

The Dun & Bradstreet Rating field in a report may also display the following designations when certain conditions are present:

• N – Negative amount of own capital after deduction of intangible asserts
• O - Own capital is not defined. The raiting is assigned if financial statements are not available for more than 2 years
• NB – Newely created business
• NQ – Activity terminated
• The `- -` Symbol: This represents the absence of a Dun & Bradstreet Rating and should not be interpreted as indicating that credit should be denied. It means that the information available to Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet does not permit us to classify the company within our Rating Key and that further inquiry should be made before reaching a credit decision. Some reasons for using the "- -" symbol include: deficit net worth, bankruptcy proceedings, lack of sufficient payment information or incomplete history indicator.

Based on Worth from Interim or Fiscal Balance Sheet

By the amount of issued capital, $

The PAYDEX score is a unique money-weighted numerical indicator of how a firm paid its bills based on trade experiences reported to Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet through its Trade Exchange program.

A score of 80 denotes that payments reported to Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet have generally been made within terms. Scores over 80 indicate that payments reported to Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet have been made earlier than terms. The chart below outlines the specific 1-100 score and what it means.

The PAYDEX score is calculated by comparing payments to terms of sale, is money-weighted and scores the overall manner of payment reported to Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet over a 12-month or a 24-month period. In Russia a minimal period is one month.

A minimum of three experiences from a minimum of 2 unique Trade suppliers are taken to calculate a PAYDEX score. In Russia a minimum of two experiences are taken. Depending on a country, 1 payment experiences may be summarized or each invoice may be considered as an individual experience. In Russia 1 payment experiences is equal to payment on 1 invoice.

When a PAYDEX is unavailable, it is due to insufficient payment experiences in Interfax - Dun & Bradstreet’s database. It should not be treated as a negative score.

Currently Dun & Bradstreet retains up to 24 months of payment experiences in the trade repository. In Russia PAYDEX is calculated using Trade data for

• 1 month
• last 3 months
• last 12 months
• Current year
• Last year

The PAYDEX can be used:

• To assist you in evaluating how a prospective customer pays their trade obligations
• To help you prioritize collections efforts (e.g., gauge the severity of a payment problem)
• As an at-a-glance overall assessment before reviewing details of a report in which it is contained
• To help make credit decisions on low orders
• Using PAYDEXse for different period of time, you can compare long term and short term payment habits

After you click «Submit» at the end of the update process, you will be taken to a date-stamped «confirmation» page. This page serves as acknowledgement of your successful submission.

With you getting a D-U-N-S® number our work over information about your company with your foreign suppliers or clients just starts. It is a day-to-day routine.

D-U-N-S® Registered™ is the special Dun & Bradstreet register of the verified companies that allows you obtaining a Trust Seal to put it on your web-pages. The Trust Seal confirms accuracy of your business data for contractors. It certifies company’s reputation as transparent and predictable. That’s why the service aims to reputation and credit risk mitigation for you and your counterparties. It is the main purpose of the Trust Seal.

Interfax – Dun & Bradstreet Trust Seal is seen on our main page at www.dnb.ru/en/.
We have offered the Trust Seal Anywhere, the version for electronic correspondence. A sample may be taken with an email from our manager.
A Trust Seal contains a hyperlink to your business’ profile in the D-U-N-S® Registered™ data base which remains valid for a year.

D-U-N-S® Registered™ ensures that your counterparty uses correct data about your business. It is important for trade relationships, especially when decisions about terms and conditions are made or re-assessed on the basis of the data. We recommend that you update the record content once a year you and your partners to be confident in information quality. In 2016 for D-U-N-S® Registered™ users we are going to add online accounts to verify and renew information.

If you need a D&B Rating to get trade credit limits, then timely submitting your financial reports is essential. Large global enterprises in finance, IT, retail, and others use D&B data to execute their credit policies.

D-U-N-S® Registered™ order form is put on www.dnb.ru/en/order/add/. We are happy to continue our cooperation.

The company is registered in the Dun & Bradstreet database according to the rules of transliteration. These conditions are mandatory for companies that are registered on the territory of the Russian Federation and are registered in an internal agreement with the Dun & Bradstreet. We can enter the name of the organization in English, taking into account the client's wishes in the "trade name" field, which will be displayed in the report when ordering the Business Information Report, as well as in the D-U-N-S® Registered™ certificate itself.