New low-interest loans to get cabinet scrutiny
A low-interest-rate loan scheme for the public is expected to go before the cabinet for approval next Tuesday, says a senior official at the Finance Ministry.
The loans will be extended via three state-controlled banks: the Government Savings Bank (GSB), the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) and GH Bank. The Finance Ministry does not need to subsidise the rates, said deputy permanent secretary for finance Amnuay Preemonwong, without elaborating on the loan amount or interest rates.
The scheme will be offered to around 1 million people, including public farmers, state officials, and small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) operators.
The loan is part of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha’s policy to let the Finance Ministry find financial assistance measures as a new year’s gift to the public.
Since Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak took the helm in August, the government has offered a wave of stimulus measures to put money into the pockets of low-income earners and SME operators. These included the 100-billion-baht soft loan package to SMEs, and a 1-million-baht no-interest loan through nearly 60,000 Village Funds ranked Grades A and B.
It also initiated a property stimulus package, with 10 billion baht in low-rate home mortgages for low-income earners.
Mr Amnuay said the Finance Ministry had provided tax assistance measures such as a two-year tax cut for SME operators to 10% for annual profits exceeding 300,000 baht to help small businesses.
Somsak Kangteerawat, BAAC’s senior executive vice-president, said his bank was exploring financial assistance measures to slim down farmers’ economic burden during the economic slowdown and expected drought next year.
The bank plans to launch the proposed measures soon, and they are expected to be more generous than past schemes, said Mr Somsak.
A source at GSB said the bank is considering cutting interest rates for loans under the People’s Bank scheme, which now charges a flat rate in a range of 0.5-0.75% per month.