Borrowers urged to plan ahead before loan moratorium ends

Come September, the six-month moratorium on bank loan repayments and the applications from employers for the government’s Wage Subsidy Programme will end. Although companies are keeping their fingers crossed that the facilities will be extended, financial experts say that borrowers in the distressed group should plan their finances ahead of the deadline.

KUALA LUMPUR: Entrepreneurs who have taken loans from financial institutions or banks should review their cash flow capabilities and financial preparedness to repay their loans by the end of the moratorium period in September, said the Association of Development Finance Institutions Malaysia (Adfim).

Adfim secretary-general Mohd

Prasad Hanif said that to guarantee their cash flow, the entrepreneurs should refine their business models so that it is consistent with the “new normal” triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Failure to get ready would expose businesses to many risks as sales would not have gone back to normal while cash flow would be disrupted as payments for loans would have to be made, he said.

“In this situation, entrepreneurs would not be able to have proper financing. Besides that, the purchasing power post Covid-19 is still in the process of adapting to the new normal and there is a possibility that entrepreneurs were not able to modify their business model to adapt to the new trend,” he said yesterday.

He said that entrepreneurs could get business advice from the entrepreneur development divisions under agencies or institutions that are Adfim members.

“They should not hesitate to get their advice because Adfim members are committed to provide help and support to them,” he said.