HKMA Lists Banks Receiving Applications for 100% Loan Guarantee Scheme
HKMA published a statement that the HKMC Insurance Limited (HKMCI) announced that, the Special 100% Loan Guarantee under the SME Financing Guarantee Scheme (SFGS) will start receiving applications from April 20, 2020. HKMCI welcomes all lenders under the SFGS to participate in the Special 100% Loan Guarantee and the lenders that will receive applications are Bank of China (Hong Kong) Limited, Bank of Communications (Hong Kong) Limited, Chong Hing Bank Limited, DBS Bank (Hong Kong) Limited, Hang Seng Bank Limited, Nanyang Commercial Bank, Ltd., OCBC Wing Hang Bank Limited, Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited, The Bank of East Asia, Limited and The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited. In addition to this, some other lenders have indicated their interest in participation.
The Special 100% Loan Guarantee is applicable to all sectors and was announced on April 03, 2020 to alleviate the challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Earlier, HKMA had also outlined the treatment of these loans under the Banking (Exposure Limits) Rules (BELR) and the Banking (Capital) Rules (BCR). The loans under this scheme will be fully guaranteed by the government. Eligible enterprises should have been operating for at least three months as at end-December 2019 and have suffered at least a 30% decline in sales turnover in any month since February 2020 compared with the monthly average of any quarter in 2019. An interest rate of the Prime Rate minus 2.5% per annum (that is, current interest rate at 2.75%) will be charged. All guarantee fee will be waived. The maximum amount of the loan per enterprise is the total amount of employee wages and rents for six months, or HKD 2 million, whichever is lower. Enterprises may also apply for an optional principal moratorium for the first 6 months, to alleviate instant burden on repayment. Subject to approval of funding by the Finance Committee of the Legislative Council, the maximum loan amount per enterprise will be increased to HKD 4 million and the principal moratorium arrangement will be extended to the first 12 months.
Keywords: Asia Pacific, Hong Kong, Banking, COVID-19, SME, HKCMI, Guarantee Scheme, SFGS, Capital Adequacy, List of Banks, Credit Risk, HKMA
Featured Experts

Victor Calanog, Ph.D.
Leading economist; commercial real estate; performance forecasting, econometric infrastructure; data modeling; credit risk modeling; portfolio assessment; custom commercial real estate analysis; thought leader.
Related Articles
EBA Clarifies Use of COVID-19-Impacted Data for IRB Credit Risk Models
The European Banking Authority (EBA) published four draft principles to support supervisory efforts in assessing the representativeness of COVID-19-impacted data for banks using the internal ratings based (IRB) credit risk models.
EP Reaches Agreement on Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive
The European Council and the European Parliament (EP) reached a provisional political agreement on the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).
PRA Consults on Model Risk Management Principles for Banks
The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) launched a consultation (CP6/22) that sets out proposal for a new Supervisory Statement on expectations for management of model risk by banks.
EC Regulation Amends Standards for Calculating Credit Risk Adjustments
The European Commission (EC) published the Delegated Regulation 2022/954, which amends regulatory technical standards on specification of the calculation of specific and general credit risk adjustments.
BIS Hub Updates Work Program for 2022, Announces New Projects
The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) Innovation Hub updated its work program, announcing a set of projects across various centers.
EIOPA Issues Cyber Underwriting Proposal, Statement on Open Insurance
The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) published two consultation papers—one on the supervisory statement on exclusions related to systemic events and the other on the supervisory statement on the management of non-affirmative cyber exposures.
US Senate Members Seek Details on SEC Proposed Climate Disclosure Rule
Certain members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs issued a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
EIOPA Consults on Review of Securitization Framework in Solvency II
The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) published a consultation paper on the advice on the review of the securitization prudential framework in Solvency II.
UK Authorities Issue Regulatory and Reporting Updates for Banks
The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) issued a statement on PRA buffer adjustment while the Bank of England (BoE) published a notice on the statistical reporting requirements for banks.
BCBS Issues Climate Risk Principles while HKMA Expresses Its Support
The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) issued principles for the effective management and supervision of climate-related financial risks.