APRA Adds a Reporting Requirement for Government SME Guarantee Scheme
APRA released a new reporting standard ARS 920.0 Australian Government Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) Guarantee Scheme to collect data from financial institutions taking part in the Federal government’s COVID SME Guarantee Scheme. The reporting standard includes Reporting Form ARF 920.0 Australian Government SME Guarantee Scheme (Portfolio Information) and Reporting Form ARF 920.1 Australian Government SME Guarantee Scheme (Loan Level Details). ARS 920.0 must be completed weekly by all lenders that are approved under the scheme. ARS 920.0 will be in effect from April 16, 2020 and will apply to reporting periods ending on or after April 17, 2020. The first data collection is due on May 01, 2020 for information as at April 17, 2020.
Under the COVID SME Guarantee Scheme, the government will provide a guarantee of 50% to SME lenders for new unsecured loans to be used for working capital. ARS 920.0 will support the scheme by providing data to government on key metrics, including number of loans approved, number of loans impaired, and number of guarantee claims made and paid. This reporting standard applies to all authorized deposit-taking institutions and registered financial corporations that are granted a guarantee under section 5 of the Guarantee of Lending to SMEs (Coronavirus Economic Response Package) Act 2020. Due to the need to provide this data to the government promptly, APRA has had to forgo its usual consultation process for the new reporting standards in this instance.
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Effective Date: April 16, 2020
Keywords: Asia Pacific, Australia, Banking, SME, COVID-19, Reporting, Guarantee Scheme, ARS 920, Data Collection, ARF 920, Statistics, APRA
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