Today Congress, in its last session of the year, will resume the debate on the bill that would impose caps on interest rates in financial institutions.
Given this, the head of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF), Waldo Mendoza, spoke on Twitter assuring that this measure will boost informal loans.
“If the law to cap interest rates is approved in Congress, citizens and entrepreneurs will have less chance of accessing loans. Informal markets would be promoted and we would take a step back in financial inclusion. That is not the way, “he said on the social network.
Mendoza indicated that, although the idea raised sounds good to the public, “the good intentions are not enough to deal with a problem if we really want to fix it. “
He explained that a forced lowering of interest rates would make credit cheaper, so there would be a great demand for loans at low rates.
As conditions are less favorable for banks, it will cause few financial institutions to be willing to lend and select those who will lend to them.
“So, Who are they going to lend to? Obviously to customers with less credit risk, people with resources, and large companies. The rest, who could not access, would be forced to resort to the informal sector, where the rates are usurious, “he says.
In other words, this measure would leave a large sector of the population without access to formal loans.
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