The board of the Banco de la República Oriental del Uruguay (BROU) resolved, this Thursday 19, to defer for 180 days the payment of amortizations in credits for all sectors affected by the agricultural emergency. Likewise, it increased its lines of credit to meet the needs of the different items, informed the general manager of the organization, Mariela Espino.
The measure will be implemented automatically in micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) with loans of less than $200,000, and the BROU will assume the cost of the postponement. In the case of debtors greater than that figure, they will be negotiated to extend the payment for six months, but the producer will have to face the interest costs. These resolutions will apply to customers with current credits as of December 31.
“It is a mechanism similar to what was done in the pandemic with all the sectors that were affected at that time,” Espino pointed out.
He said that the institution sent a request to the Central Bank of Uruguay (BCU) so that the postponement would not harm the qualification of the clients. “What we are looking for here is that, at this serious moment, the client does not have to worry about the issue of maturities in the bank,” he said.
credit increase
The BROU ordered the increase in credit lines approved for all affected clients up to 10%, immediately, with a maximum limit of $100,000 per debtor.
In addition, regarding the loan for irrigation solutions “Water for your plot”, established in 2022 for the dairy and livestock sector, it will be extended to all sectors and segments and the maximum financing limit of $20,000 will be eliminated. “It is tailored to the needs of customers,” he said. The agency will subsidize up to 80% of the investments that seek to improve access to sources in terms that will go up to 10 years.
Also, a special financing line will once again be available for both current and new clients who face the consequences of the water deficit and meet certain basic access requirements. Funding will be awarded on the basis of $55 per cow or steer and $35 per one- or two-year-old calf and heifer, with an estimated final maturity of 15-18 months.
On the other hand, the “Express Credit” was established for new clients, with amounts of up to $25,000 in loans. “It is for clients with their first contact with the bank and who with a limited number of documentation can obtain that credit in 48 hours,” he indicated.
The hierarch assured that these measures are taken based on the experience acquired during the pandemic with similar support for most sectors of the economy. He added that the resolutions provide peace of mind to producers for a limited period of time, the most critical, and will allow them to rebuild their situation without a negative effect on the institution’s delinquency, since, after that period, they will continue to comply with their obligations. in a normal way. “This results in a good rating for the client and a very good level of delinquency for the bank,” she stressed.
