NBS Expects as Many Banks as Possible to Implement Loan Exemptions Which Start Today

The new regulations of the National Bank of Serbia (NBS), which enable banks to re-finance retail credits at a less expensive rate and delay payment by 24 months, apply from today, and a representative of the Sector for Control of Banks' Operations at the NBS, Marija Ugrcic, says that this is a recommendation made to banks, not an obligation, and that the banks themselves are to estimate who should benefit from the exemptions in line with their business policies.

Ugrcic said on TV Pink that the NBS' decisions pertained to consumer, cash and other loans issued to natural persons before March 18, 2020, but not to housing loans or current accounts overdrafts.

– The decisions adopted by the NBS at the latest session of the Executive Board on July 9 are not binding for the banks. Instead, they are a regulatory incentive for the banks to approve the refinancing or delay of payment of the last installment to clients who borrowed money before March 18 – Ugrcic said.

She points out that the NBS' decisions apply to all banks and that it is up to each bank to offer its clients credit exemptions in line with its loan policy, estimate of the bank's risk profile and product catalog.

Ugrcic advises citizens to inform themselves on the banks' websites about the current offer of exemptions and adds that the NBS expects the banks to implement these exemptions as soon as possible and in as great a number as possible.

Narodna banka Srbije Beograd

NBS

Marija Ugrčić

consumer loans

cash loans

housing loans

loan exemptions