Creditworthiness and 'Responsible Credit'

Noah Vardi, Ph.D. (2005), University of Verona, is Associate Professor of Comparative Law at the Roma Tre University. Her research focuses on European private law, financial markets, banking and payment systems, and the law of money and cryptocurrencies. Her publications include the monograph The Integration of European Financial Markets: The Regulation of Monetary Obligations (Routledge, 2010).

AcknowledgmentsI





1 Introduction: Creditworthiness and ‘Responsible Credit’


 Introduction


 1.1 Defining ‘Responsible Credit’


 1.2 Responsible Credit and the Global Financial Crisis


 1.3 Profiles of Relevance of Responsible Credit


 1.4 Creditworthiness


 1.5 Caution and Criticisms


 1.6 Methodology


 1.7 Structure of the Book





2 Creditworthiness Assessment as a Macroprudential Duty


 Introduction


 2.1 Responsible Credit as a Macroprudential Duty: The Duty of Creditworthiness Assessment in Banking Regulation


 2.2 Credit Assessments and Credit Rating


 2.3 A Few Final Observations: Inferences from the Comparison of Regulatory Choices and Issues Surrounding a Hypothetical ‘Right to a Creditworthiness Assessment’





3 Creditworthiness for Individuals: Methodologies and Legal Issues


 Introduction


 3.1 Creditworthiness Assessment and Credit Reporting


 3.2 Data Protection and Antidiscrimination: Comparative Legal Issues


 3.3 Small Business Lending and Credit Scoring


 3.4 Comparative Overview and Conclusive Remarks on Credit Scoring and Responsible Lending





4 Creditworthiness Assessment and Other Contractual Duties as Tools of ‘Responsible Credit’: the Case of Consumer Loans


 Introduction


 4.1 Creditworthiness Assessment in Consumer Credit Contracts and Mortgage Loan Contracts


 4.2 Effects of the ‘Responsible Lending’ Provisions on Contract Law


 4.3 Instruments for the Enforcement of ‘Responsible Credit’ Provisions


 4.4 A Few Conclusive Comparative Remarks





5 Access to Credit and Responsible Lending


 Introduction


 5.1 The ‘Democratization of Credit’


 5.2 Access to Credit as a Policy for Consumers and the Problem of Financial Exclusion


 5.3 Access to Credit as a Right? Theorizing ‘Due Process’ in Access to Credit


 5.4 Access to Credit and the Right to Housing


 5.5 Responsible Credit as a Protective Duty and a Tool for Inclusion


Bibliography