mercantile agency

n (Banking & Finance) an enterprise that collects and supplies information about the financial credit standing of individuals and enterprises

Thesaurus

Noun

mercantile agency - an organization that provides businesses with credit ratings of other firms; "Dun & Bradstreet is the largest mercantile agency in the United States"commercial agencyagency - a business that serves other businesses

Mercantile agency

An organization that supplies credit ratings and reports on firms that are prospective customers.

Dun & Bradstreet

A company specializing in the investigation of credit worthiness, financial standing, and/or reputation of other businesses. It provides this information to third parties for a fee. Some mercantile agencies compile information into large databases, which they then distribute to subscribers. The first mercantile agency was founded in 1841 in New York under the name of "Mercantile Agency," and it is now known as Dun & Bradstreet. See also: Business intelligence, Due diligence.

mercantile agency