The Monetary Board approved the changes to the Credit Risk Regulations, which were proposed by the Superintendence of Banks and seek to simplify the requirements for loans not exceeding $160,000.
In this scenario of economic crisis resulting from the outbreak of covid-19, the objective of the endorsed modifications is to favor SMEs and individuals to gain access to credit lines offered by commercial banks.
The Monetary Board has issued regulations governing the registration of local rating agencies, and the requirement for all financial institutions to be qualified.
In addition the Monetary Board (MB), published the regulation on Concentration in Contingencies and Investments as well as issues related to the operating permits for offshore entities, regulations that are part of the changes made to the Banking Act and financial groups that were in effect before April 1.
Rating agencies registration is now mandatory and banking institutions must be rated by one of them.
Rating agencies will have to submit their paperwork to the Superintendency of Banks (SIB). According to the chairman of the Monetary Board (JM) and the Bank of Guatemala (Banguat), Edgar Barquin, "among the amendments to the Law on Banks and Financial Groups is the addition that now banks must have a risk rating" .
According to a resolution from the Junta Monetaria (JM) banks in the financial system can offer their clients mass scale insurance services.
Resolution JM-142-2011, published on Friday 2 December in the Diario Oficial states that the sale of insurance products has been regulated by article 89 of the Law on Insurance Activities since the 5th of January, however it was necessary for the JM , in the opinion of the Superintendency of Banks (SIB), to authorize banking institutions to undertake other operations and provide other services that were not accounted for in the aforementioned legislation ‘as long as they are compatible with normal functions’.
Guatemala's Banking Superintendent submitted new regulations for approval before the Central Bank's Monetary Board.
Edgar Barquín, head of the Superintendence, explained that the proposed regulation intends to comply with Basel accords and strengthen risk-based supervision.
Barquín added that "... they want banks to execute strategies which include credit profiling, policies for risk management and adequate liquidity controls".
The Monetary Board extended the term of the money table for domestic banks up to May 31.
Prensalibre.com reports: "The measure allows banks to get funds via repurchase agreements that were authorized on 1 November 2008 and which would have expired on 31 January 2009.
The option of opening a window to provide liquidity in dollars came from the decision of the correspondent banks to cut or reduce lines of credit to local banks."
The banking sector requested that the term for the temporary measure of providing liquidity in US dollars via repo transactions be extended.
Sigloxxi.com reports that "Jose Angel Lopez Camposeco, president of the Banking Association of Guatemala (ABG) and the Rural Development Bank (Banrural), commented that the measure worked, "because it is an instrument which gave signals that in case of any need for or suspension of credit, we have resources available."
Since yesterday financial groups offering loans will be required to have reserves that equal 100% of the expired credits portfolio.
According to prensalibre.com, "In order to achieve this, generic reserves have been established to support current (specific) requests.
Banks should have reserves representing a percentage based on the last accrued months of portfolio, which range from 5% for a 30-day accrual and up to three month, and 100% for more than a year."