Why the Demands of the eIDAS Position Paper Would Enhance the Accuracy of Ratings

The introduction of the EUDI Wallet and the establishment of a trustworthy and widely adopted eIDAS ecosystem offer transformative potential—not only for digital administration and consumer services, but also for the world of credit ratings and risk assessments. Implementing the five demands outlined in the July 2025 position paper would significantly strengthen the foundations for creating more accurate, efficient, and transparent ratings across sectors.

First, increasing digital competence, particularly within public institutions, is crucial. As the paper notes, “Digitalkompetenzen insbesondere im Bereich digitaler Identitäten und Vertrauensdienste” must be developed across ministries and regulatory authorities. Ratings often rely on fragmented and analog data trails. By enhancing digital proficiency and integrating digital identities systematically, data relevant for ratings—such as ownership structures, compliance documents, and verified financial credentials—can be securely accessed and evaluated, reducing human error and manipulation.

Third, consumer protection mechanisms, including data minimization, pseudonymization, and transparent access rights management, would not only shield individuals and entities from misuse of data but also ensure that only the most relevant and verified information feeds into rating models. When over-identification and unnecessary data exposure are curbed, the quality of datasets improves, directly enhancing the validity of rating outcomes.

Fourth, leveraging existing structures and making them more efficient is directly aligned with a long-standing need in the rating industry: streamlined data collection and regulatory alignment. As the paper urges a centralized oversight and consistent application of eIDAS rules, rating agencies would benefit from harmonized legal frameworks across borders, facilitating cross-country comparability and reducing regulatory friction. This is particularly relevant for pan-European or global credit rating models.

Finally, the promotion of concrete use cases—from KYC processes to organizational identities—would lead to an ecosystem where verified information is continuously updated, accessible, and machine-readable. Ratings could thus evolve from periodic snapshots to dynamic, real-time risk assessments, powered by authenticated and constantly refreshed digital credentials. As the position paper notes, focusing on key applications like digital driver’s licenses, age verification, and academic credentials could create a “snowball effect” that rapidly broadens the scope and reliability of digital trust systems.

In conclusion, the demands of the eIDAS position paper—though primarily aimed at improving digital identity infrastructure in the EU—would have a profound side benefit: enabling more accurate, timely, and trustworthy ratings. By embedding trust, security, and usability into digital identity systems, the ecosystem would deliver higher-quality data and processes that every rating agency depends on. A modern rating system needs a modern foundation—and eIDAS offers exactly that.