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KUALA LUMPUR: All those who have been affected by the pandemic will receive help, said Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) Governor Datuk Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus, quashing misconceptions circulating about targeted payment assistance.
“The common misconception is that without a blanket moratorium, distressed borrowers will not get help, (instead) the aid is for everyone who has been affected by the pandemic, including the extension of the moratorium,” he said.
Those who have lost their jobs, especially in the tourism sector, have received a general moratorium of three months and will be given an extension if they are unemployed.
He said that the help remains for those who need it and that borrowers have the option of a more personalized solution to meet their financial needs.
“Another common mistake is that they need too many documents. It is not the case. For the B40, banks have access to the beneficiaries of BSH (Bantuan Sara Hidup) and BPR (Bantuan Prihatin Rakyat). So banks are able to identify them, ”he said during a Senior Editors briefing on Thursday.
Micro-enterprises do not need to provide any documents and only minimal documents are required from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to help banks provide appropriate advice to borrowers.
To date, a total of 640,000 requests for assistance have been received, with an approval rate of 98%, of which 40% have obtained an extension of the moratorium and 60% a reduction in the fee.
He also reiterated that requests for all repayment assistance directed before June 30, 2021 will not appear in borrowers’ CCRIS records.
The Central Credit Reference Information System (CCRIS) is basically a centralized database that provides a picture of one’s financial health.
“And if they are not happy with something, they can always complain to Bank Negara. I can assure you that Bank Negara acts on every complaint it receives, ”said Nor Shamsiah.
When asked if the blanket moratorium was a mistake and the selective moratorium approach should have been taken from the beginning, he said: “No. At that moment it was the correct decision as everything came to a complete stop.
“So during the motion control order (MCO), it was okay to have a broad-based measurement and provide immediate relief in the form of a blanket moratorium for all households and SMB borrowers.
“When their economy shrinks by almost 30 percent. That was the correct policy to minimize the permanent fear of the economy. “
Malaysia’s economy fell 17.1 percent in the second quarter of 2020 as the country entered a lockdown with a strong enforcement mechanism to stop the spread of the Covid-19 disease. The worst part of the lockdown was felt in April 2020 when the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) fell 28.6 percent year-on-year.
However, now everything has recovered from setbacks.
After the MCO, some have started to recover and reimburse themselves.
“So there is recovery, but there are those who still need it (for example, the tourism sector) and are receiving the necessary help in the form of specific assistance,” he said.
He said balancing the needs of different stakeholders is critical and that borrowers should have a choice amid individual circumstances.
“Many borrowers began resuming payments even before the moratorium ended,” Nor Shamsiah said.
He said 89 percent of SME borrowers started paying as of September 2020 compared to the first quarter of this year and for households it is 73 percent.Called
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