The central bank has pledged if required to double the amount of money earmarked to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to deal with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) said yesterday.
The central bank last month made NT$200 billion (US$6.62 billion) of financing available for banks to help such businesses particularly hit by the effects of the coronavirus, such as those in the tourism and transport sectors, in the form of preferential loans.
Central bank Governor Yang Chin-long (楊金龍) last week said that more money would be made available if that was insufficient, although he did not give details, and said he had personally spoken to banks hoping they could help.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
“The central bank promised that it would offer another NT$200 billion if the initial funding was insufficient,” Financial Supervisory Commission Chairman Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said at a news conference in Taipei.
The commission has also offered incentives to banks encouraging them to extend credit to the affected businesses or industries under the government’s financial relief scheme, Koo said.
Banks had received 2,033 applications from the affected businesses for NT$30.43 billion in loans as of Wednesday last week, and they had approved 407 applications for NT$6.17 billion in loans, the commission’s data showed.
The nation has won plaudits for its early and effective disease prevention measures, but its export-reliant economy has wilted, first as much of China was locked down, then as the coronavirus spread through Europe and the US, crushing global demand.
The government last week announced it would spend NT$1.05 trillion on stimulus measures.
The central bank on March 19 cut its full-year GDP growth forecast to 1.92 percent from a December forecast of 2.57 percent, although some banks expect the economy to shrink this year.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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