BANGKOK, 7 July 2015 – Government Spokesperson Major General Sansern Kaewkamnerd has said two of the nine entities authorized by the government to provide nano-finance loans have already started issuing the loans to members of the public.
According Maj. Gen. Sansern, the two lenders comprise a daughter company of Srisawad Power 1979 Plc. and non-bank lender ThaiAce Capital Co. Ltd. The former has so far issued nano-finance loans worth 250,000 baht to 32 borrowers whereas the latter has issued 370,000 baht of loans to 18 borrowers. The amount of loans is expected to grow as soon as the rest of the authorized lenders finish setting up their systems and more businesses become licensed to provide the nano-finance loans. There are around nine more businesses waiting to be issued their license.
The nano-finance loans is a government initiative to improve low-income individuals’ access to funds. Under the scheme, non-bank companies authorized by the Ministry of Finance may provide loans up to 100,000 baht each to individuals who could not borrow from banks due to their lack of collateral. The interest charged by these firms, inclusive of fees, must not exceed 36% per year.
