Firms to be rebranded to correct ah long perception

PUTRAJAYA: The Housing and Local Government Ministry is to rebrand money-lending companies to remove the negative perception that they are unlicensed syndicates commonly known as ah long.

Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin said the rebranding which would also make them more customerfriendly was expected to be done by June.

“Although the performance of these money-lending firms, licensed by the ministry, is good, the negative perception has made the people or small traders shy away from getting loans from them,” she said after delivering the new year message to the ministry’s staff here yesterday.

Zuraida said the ministry’s Moneylenders and Pawnbrokers Division record shows that there were about 3,900 money-lending companies offering loans at lending and handling rates which differed from those of financial institutions or commercial banks.

“We want the people to realise that money-lending companies are legal, offer unlimited loans and do not demand many documents as is conditional for financial institutions or commercial banks,” she said, adding that these companies had been operating since the Moneylenders and Pawnbrokers Division was established in 2007.

Zuraida also said the ministry was in talks with Bank Negara to seek flexibility for those in B40 group to secure housing loans.

“This is in line with the initiative to provide the opportunity for them to own homes at prices up to RM300,000 a unit and on hire purchase,” she said.

She said the move to boost home ownership through the National Home Ownership Campaign announced in Budget 2019 would be launched with a massive exhibition by the property sector in March in Kuala Lumpur.

She added that the three-day exhibition beginning March 1 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre would gather 180 property developers and every purchase would be given a 10% discount. — Bernama