Wertheim / Main-Tauber district.The state supported the troubled economy with extensive pandemic aid packages. That has had an effect. Bankruptcies were limited. But does this also apply to the future?
Alexander Braun from BW-Bank predicts that “the consequences of the pandemic will only show with a considerable delay”. The insolvency figures “did not increase significantly” – also thanks to the extension of the suspension of the obligation to file for bankruptcy until the end of the year. The short-time work allowance – even if the number of unemployed has risen somewhat – largely prevented mass layoffs. Overall, lending has “increased significantly”.
State aid works
Wolfgang Reiner from Sparkasse Tauberfranken confirms the positive effect of the state support measures. State guarantees for a portion of the Corona loans have made it easier for the Sparkasse to “support our customers in a completely new and very demanding situation”.
Nevertheless, according to Reiner, there were enormous challenges because “the legal requirements were met and an independent and reliable credit decision had to be made for each customer”. Tilman Fabig from Volksbank Main-Tauber reports that the suspension of payments and the suspension of the obligation to file for insolvency caused a “delay in development” and thus “prevented an uncontrolled development of insolvencies”. Requirements for the granting of KfW loans are designed in such a way that only those companies can borrow money that were operating in “healthy economic conditions” before the crisis began.
No loan defaults
The Volksbank has so far not recorded any loan defaults from business customers, according to Fabig. The same applies to the Sparkasse. Wolfgang Reiner reports that due to the booming economy in recent years, the companies have built up “good substance” to “survive a certain dry spell”.
It is exciting to see how the pandemic develops. “Will we find a good way of dealing with the crisis or will the second wave come with great force?” Asks Reiner the crucial question. The government measures are currently helping to reduce costs. “Companies that were already in difficult waters before the crisis will have a harder time”, he predicts and adds: “If the support runs out, we need good economic development to stabilize the order and sales situation of these companies.”
But there are also companies that profit from the markets or are quickly reorganizing their business models and thus benefit from current trends. BW-Bank also speaks of “companies that will come out of the crisis properly or stronger”, but expects that there will be “further selection processes and a significant increase in insolvencies”.
Volksbank spokesman Tilmann Fabig also fears a probable “shift of the economic difficulties into the future” if the business model of a company no longer functions independently of the crisis.
Risk provision
The credit institutions are already preparing for the challenges of the future. BW-Bank has already taken additional risk provisions.
The Volksbank has “sufficient capital cover and has already taken preparatory measures to get through such a phase well”, says Tilmann Fabig. “We have a tried and tested system for early risk detection,” says Fabig.
At the Sparkasse, the “risks in our loan portfolio are kept very close”, says Wolfgang Reiner. Direct contact with customers is important: “Especially in difficult times, it is good to exchange ideas about possible scenarios at an early stage.”
© Fränkische Nachrichten, Friday, October 23rd, 2020
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