The coronavirus has left an economic impact in several countries. For this reason, some governments are developing exceptional measures to mitigate its effects. For example, the suspension of tax and mortgage payments to lessen the economic pressure on small businesses and households.
In the United States, interest rates were reduced to almost zero and a US$700 billion stimulus program was launched in a bid to protect its economy, says Mario Miranda, director of finance at MonederoSMART.
In El Salvador, the Legislative Assembly decided to extend until June 1, 2021, the validity of the Decree of the Special Law to Facilitate the Cancellation of Agricultural and Livestock Debts.
The approval was made with the aim of giving the peasants who benefit from this regulation approved in 1998 a new period of 12 months to cancel the debts acquired with the banks, the Legislative informed.
Fitch Ratings agreed to change the perspective of the region's banks from stable to negative, arguing that the current health crisis will affect financial institutions in all countries.
Considering the measures that countries have adopted in the last 15 days in economic matters, following the spread of covid-19, Fitch expects that there will be a decrease in the issuance of loans.
In El Salvador, banks will not be able to charge any kind of penalty to clients who, due to the crisis of the covid-19, fail to pay their credit quotas.
They were approved "Temporary Technical Norms to Face Noncompliance’s and Contractual Obligations" derived from the emergency were approved, which will avoid that, during the validity of the emergency, the credit risk category of Salvadorans is affected, therefore, no penalty will be charged for non payment. With these rules will also allow the granting of credits, consolidation, restructuring and refinancing of debts in favorable conditions for those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, reported the Central Reserve Bank (BCR).
The impact of the coronavirus crisis on the financial sector in Central America is expected to be felt mainly in services related to stock brokerage and investment advice, where a drop is expected.
The "Information System for the Impact Analysis of Covid-19 on Business", prepared by the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData, measures the degree of impact that the crisis will have on companies according to their sector or economic activity, during the coming months.
The Óptima financial group bought the shares of Financiera Solidaria S.A., a transaction that amounted to $50 million.
Directors of Óptima reported that Financiera Solidaria S.A. (Finsol) has been in the Honduran market for 21 years and that this acquisition is part of its strategy to regionalize the financial company in the micro and small business segments.
Up to July 2019, gross loans in the country totaled $12,840 million, 5% more than the amount reported in the same month of 2018.
With respect to the assets of the banking system, data from the Superintendence of the Financial System (SSF) detail that up to July of this year totaled $18.558 million, which represents a $1.016 million increase when compared to the balance of the same month in 2018.
In El Salvador, it was announced that as of September 2, the interest rate for the purchase of recovered homes will be reduced from 6% to 3%, while for homes of up to $25,000 the rate will be 4% for loans granted by the Social Fund for Housing.
The new conditions will apply to the formal sector, for new housing with a price of up to $25,000 dollars, which will offer an interest rate of 4% and zero premium, informed the Salvadoran government.
With the approval of the reforms to the Credit Card System Law, in El Salvador it will be banned to charge interest on surcharges generated by arrears.
The reforms also establish that banks must deliver free of charge settlements and cancellations of credit cards, physically or electronically, at the latest within 24 hours, while the documents of obligation or promissory notes that the debtor has signed must be returned within 5 business days maximum, informed the Legislative Assembly:
In a competitive scenario for lower costs and higher productivity, devaluation against the Lempira Dollar in Honduras and the Cordoba Dollar in Nicaragua is a factor that could help these economies stay competitive.
In the last five years, the exchange rate in Honduras increased by 17%, from 21.06 Lempiras per U.S. dollar in June 2014 to 24.67 in the same month in 2019.
After the abolition of the Financial Operations Tax last year in El Salvador, credit to the productive sector increased from 5% in 2018 to 9% at the beginning of 2019.
The Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice issued a ruling, in which it was ordered to cease charging at the end of 2018 a tax that levied 0.25% on financial operations of $1,000 and above. This decision had a positive impact, according to directors of the system's banks.
Up to March of this year, Salvadoran financial institutions registered credits to the construction sector for $521 million, 40% more than what was reported at the end of the same month in 2018.
Data from the Salvadoran Banking Association (Abansa) specify that between March 2018 and the same month of 2019 the net loan portfolio registered a 5.6% growth, going from $11,717.1 million to $12,372.7 million.
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From May 2019, foreign customers will have to declare to local system banks that their funds meet their country's tax requirements.
The Superintendence of Banks of Panama (SBP) approved Agreement 02-2019, which implements the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force, which consists of expanding the required due diligence measures of banks with their customers.
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