The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU), under conditions of the coronavirus pandemic, hopes to launch a mass mortgage lending program in Q4, 2020, Acting Governor of the NBU Kateryna Rozhkova has said.
“In the fourth quarter, it will be possible to launch a mass mortgage lending program (…) The high-quality borrowers will obtain 10% per annum by economic and not administrative means. The mortgage will join additional related industries which also require additional crediting,” she said in an exclusive interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
Rozhkova also said that the NBU is working with banks on other ways of crediting expansion, in particular, it calls on banks to reduce interest rates on loans and deposits in the corporate sector.
“Banks are reluctant to reduce interest rates on loans in the corporate sector, they are trying to save their margin, although the times of the highest margin have gone in the past. Therefore, we are working with them and trying to persuade them to reduce interest rates on deposits. Some banks with foreign capital and our largest national [banks] have already cut them,” she said.
The regulators have also asked the banks to prepare new loan programs for business with regard to the coronavirus crisis.
“Interest rates will be lower and loans will have longer terms and milder conditions in order to help businesses recover. The task of a bank is not just to issue a loan, but also to make sure that businesses will put this money in operation, stay sound and return the debt after some time properly,” the acting NBU governor said.
The regulator is also trying to persuade the banks to prepare debts restructuring programs for the borrowers who are currently on ‘credit holidays.’
“It is summer now. This season has always been a downtime, but from autumn the banks will start increasing the volumes of crediting,” Rozhkova said.
