Algorithmics wins European credit registry contract

Algorithmics, the Toronto-based risk management software company, is to help run a planned Europe-wide credit data service.

Set up last year, the Pan-European Credit Data Consortium (PECDC) is an alliance of European and global banks aimed at pooling data on credit risk as part of their preparation for the implementation of Basel II.

The lack of sufficient historical credit data is one of the biggest problems with implementation. Algorithmics will design the data pool, collect and verify credit data from companies in and outside Europe, and ensure quality control.

The pool will be built on Algo Credit Data products, aimed at providing benchmark exposure at default(EaD), recovery rate and loss given default (LGD) values for each exposure. With a software provider in place, said PECDC committee member Scott Aguais, who is head of credit risk methodology at Barclays Capital and previously worked at Algorithmics, "we can now get the hard work really started".