FROM Monday (2 November 2020), small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in financial distress because of the Covid-19 pandemic will be able to access the Sole Proprietors and Partnerships (SPP) Scheme and Extended Support Scheme - Customised (ESS-C) to restructure credit facilities and debts owed to multiple lenders.
The two schemes, both launched on Sunday, are part of a package of extended relief measures announced by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) and the Finance Houses Association of Singapore on 5 October 2020.
The SPP Scheme by ABS and the Ministry of Law is for sole proprietors and partnerships that are having difficulty servicing their loans but are likely to recover if they are given time and concessions for their loan repayments.
Debt restructuring charity Credit Counselling Singapore (CCS) will help the SPPs restructure their unsecured business debts owed to participating lenders under the scheme. Monthly instalment payments will be lowered by extending the loan repayment period to up to a maximum of eight years. Interest rates will be based on the individual loan's original contractual terms, subject to a maximum of 7% p.a..
Attend CCS monthly webinar on Business Debt Management to find out more.
To qualify, the SPP must owe unsecured debts to two or more of the participating lenders and the total unsecured debt must not exceed S$1 million. Approval of SPP Scheme applications will be at the discretion of the lenders.
Participating lenders for the SPP Scheme are American Express, CIMB Bank, Citibank, DBS, Diners Club, ETHOZ Capital, Goldbell Financial Services, HL Bank, Hong Leong Finance, HSBC Bank, Maybank, OCBC, RHB Bank, Singapura Finance, Sing Investments & Finance, Standard Chartered Bank and UOB.
Published 2 November 2020