SB Corp. offers loan moratorium, rehab financing to MSMEs

SB Corp. is offering MSMEs a one-month moratorium on loan payments from March 16 to April 14, 2020, as a response to the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Additionally, borrowers may request to pay only the interest on their loans for the following six months, with regular payments resuming afterward.

SB Corp. has also launched a P1-billion Enterprise Rehabilitation Financing (ERF) program to aid micro and small enterprises affected by the pandemic.

The ERF facility, part of President Duterte's economic relief program, will be available once the community quarantine is lifted.

Micro-enterprises with assets up to P3 million can borrow between P10,000 and P200,000, while small enterprises with assets up to P10 million can borrow up to P500,000.

Eligible businesses must have operated for at least a year before March 2020 and experienced a significant drop in sales due to the epidemic.

Loanable funds can be used for updating loan amortizations, replacing lost inventory, and providing working capital to restart operations.

The loan carries an interest rate of 0.5 percent per month, with a grace period on payments until the economic crisis subsides.