| (1) | Any person who intentionally gives him or herself out to be— |
| (a) | a credit provider, without having been registered under section 39 or section 40, as may be applicable; |
| (b) | a credit provider of developmental credit, without having been registered under section 41; |
| (c) | credit bureau, without having been registered under section 43; |
| (d) | a debt counsellor, without having been registered under section 44; |
| (e) | a payment distribution agent, without having been registered under section 44A; or |
| (f) | an alternative dispute resolution agent, without having been registered under section 134A, is guilty of an offence. |
| (2) | Subsection (1) does not apply if— |
| (a) | at the time the credit agreement was made, or within 30 days after that time, the credit provider had applied for registration in terms of section 40, and was awaiting a determination of that application; |
| (b) | at the time the credit agreement was made, the credit provider held a valid clearance certificate issued by the National Credit Regulator in terms of section 42(3)(b); or |
| (c) | the act in question was a once-off transaction or incidental to the main business of the person contemplated in subsection (1): Provided that the main business of that person may not be the provision of credit, debt counselling, payment distribution or alternative dispute resolution as contemplated in this Act, nor may it be the retention of credit information as contemplated in this Act. |
[Section 157C inserted by section 25 of Notice No. 1081, GG 42649, dated 19 August 2019]
