More banks are jumping on the wagon, offering moratoriums to flood victims

ALLIANCE Bank Malaysia Bhd, Hong Leong Bank Bhd and SME Bank have all announced financial assistance for customers affected by the flood situation in several states in Malaysia.

In a statement today, Alliance Bank said its flood relief assistance initiative comprises a six-month loan moratorium, loan repayment modifications, and waivers of fees and charges for selected services.

The services include replacement of debit cards, automated teller machine (ATM) cards, cheque books and passbooks lost or damaged by floods.

Its group CEO Joel Kornreich said affected customers can contact the bank to discuss the relief package that meets their needs.

Meanwhile, Hong Leong Bank and Hong Leong Islamic Bank have also mobilised a flood relief assistance programme offering a payment moratorium of up to six months for all loan and Islamic banking facilities, including credit card.

Additional financing will also be made available to existing small and medium enterprises and commercial customers who require working capital to facilitate their business recovery as a result of the recent floods, the group said in a statement.

Hong Leong Bank group managing director and CEO Domenic Fuda said affected customers who are currently receiving assistance under the bank’s Payment Relief Assistance Plan, as well as customers under the Payment Relief Assistance for B40, M40 and microenterprises for COVID-19-related issues, are also eligible to apply for the flood relief assistance.

“The bank is also offering free replacement of bank-related documents such as debit and credit cards, as well as cheques and bank statements damaged or lost in the floods,” he said.

As part of its community disaster response efforts, the bank has pledged a donation of RM200,000 to non-profit organisation Mercy Malaysia.

Apart from that, SME Bank announces six months automatic moratorium assistance to all its customers who are affected by the current flood situation.

Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives (MEDAC), Datuk Seri Dr. Haji Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said: “The six months moratorium assistance will not only allow entrepreneurs to stabilise their cash flow, but also provide space for them to focus on repairing office areas, factories and premises so that they can resume operations after the disaster ends.”

SME Bank group president and CEO Aria Putera Ismail added: “Apart from providing moratoriums and various financing assistance, Centre for Entrepreneur Development and Research Sdn. Bhd. (CEDAR) is also ready to provide advisory services on restructuring of business plans as well as other relevant entrepreneur development trainings to enable entrepreneurs to resume operations as soon as the situation recovers.”

For more information on the moratorium assistance, entrepreneurs who are affected by the floods are required to contact their respective Relationship Managers as soon as possible. This moratorium assistance is subject to terms and conditions. – Jan 14, 2021

Subscribe and get top news delivered to your Inbox everyday for FREE