During a press conference held on Thursday, 16 April by the Minister of Finance and the Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services and Digital Economy, another measure has been announced to support businesses impacted by the COVID19 pandemic - an interest rate subsidy of up to 2.5% on bank loans. It appears that the subsidy is subject to the payment of a minimum rate of 0.1%. The Parliamentary Secretary emphasised that the subsidy is not aimed at financing investments like the purchase of property but is aimed at supporting businesses to keep operating during COVID times and eventually recover. Businesses wishing to avail themselves of the subsidised facilities should contact any of the participating banks (BOV, HSBC, BNF Bank, APS, MeDirect, Lombard Bank, Izola Bank, FCM Bank). Applications close in June 2020 and are subject to the eligibility criteria of the banks. We expect more details to be published on this measure in the coming days.
This interest rate subsidy is an additional measure to and can be applied in conjunction with the COVID19 Guarantee Scheme launched by the Malta Development Bank on 3 April providing for a 6 month moratorium, extendible to 1 year, on loans provided by accredited banks
Should you have any queries or wish to discuss further, please send an email to covid@kpmg.com.mt.
Originally published 17 April, 2020
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