A group of debt-ridden credit and cash card borrowers yesterday sued the nation's financial regulator for allegedly failing to rein in banks' irresponsible issuance of credit products and poor credit checks.
Accompanied by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Shyu Jong-shyong (
Both Kong and Tseng were accused of failing to control "irresponsible" issuance of credit and cash cards, excessive interest rates and improper and violent debt collection activities.
Representing those heavily in debt, Liu Bao-cheng (
In response, the commission said in a statement yesterday that it respects people's right to file lawsuits. But the commission stressed that it did not neglect its duties and had carried out a series of measures to help borrowers negotiate with banks over debt repayment and facilitate a "soft landing" for the banking sector.
The financial watchdog said it had demanded that banks improve their credit control.
In addition, the Bankers Association (銀行公會) last month began offering debtors a card debt negotiation mechanism that provides reduced interest rates at a minimum of 3.88 percent, compared with the 20 percent revolving rate levied on credit or cash cards, and longer payback terms of up to 80 months.
From Jan. 1 to Feb. 18, the mechanism received 11,946 applications and has wrapped up 7,323 cases. Up to 5,841 of the completed cases reached an agreement on a payback plan, representing a success ratio of 80 percent and total debt of NT$10 billion (US$308 billion), the commission said earlier this week.
However, Shyu said that only about 10 percent of card debtors were relieved through the mechanism, while many heavily indebted borrowers still have to suffer their snowballing debts due to the tight qualifications on entering the bail-out system.
The commission — which received 403 phone calls on the 20 help lines it launched Thursday — said it will monitor the follow-up on some 147 calls complaining about the debt negotiation mechanism.
Stephen Garrett, a 27-year-old graduate student, always thought he would study in China, but first the country’s restrictive COVID-19 policies made it nearly impossible and now he has other concerns. The cost is one deterrent, but Garrett is more worried about restrictions on academic freedom and the personal risk of being stranded in China. He is not alone. Only about 700 American students are studying at Chinese universities, down from a peak of nearly 25,000 a decade ago, while there are nearly 300,000 Chinese students at US schools. Some young Americans are discouraged from investing their time in China by what they see
MAJOR DROP: CEO Tim Cook, who is visiting Hanoi, pledged the firm was committed to Vietnam after its smartphone shipments declined 9.6% annually in the first quarter Apple Inc yesterday said it would increase spending on suppliers in Vietnam, a key production hub, as CEO Tim Cook arrived in the country for a two-day visit. The iPhone maker announced the news in a statement on its Web site, but gave no details of how much it would spend or where the money would go. Cook is expected to meet programmers, content creators and students during his visit, online newspaper VnExpress reported. The visit comes as US President Joe Biden’s administration seeks to ramp up Vietnam’s role in the global tech supply chain to reduce the US’ dependence on China. Images on
New apartments in Taiwan’s major cities are getting smaller, while old apartments are increasingly occupied by older people, many of whom live alone, government data showed. The phenomenon has to do with sharpening unaffordable property prices and an aging population, property brokers said. Apartments with one bedroom that are two years old or older have gained a noticeable presence in the nation’s six special municipalities as well as Hsinchu county and city in the past five years, Evertrust Rehouse Co (永慶房產集團) found, citing data from the government’s real-price transaction platform. In Taipei, apartments with one bedroom accounted for 19 percent of deals last
US CONSCULTANT: The US Department of Commerce’s Ursula Burns is a rarely seen US government consultant to be put forward to sit on the board, nominated as an independent director Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, yesterday nominated 10 candidates for its new board of directors, including Ursula Burns from the US Department of Commerce. It is rare that TSMC has nominated a US government consultant to sit on its board. Burns was nominated as one of seven independent directors. She is vice chair of the department’s Advisory Council on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Burns is to stand for election at TSMC’s annual shareholders’ meeting on June 4 along with the rest of the candidates. TSMC chairman Mark Liu (劉德音) was not on the list after in December last