|
|
| • EXCH RATES |
|
Baht/$ 33.39/42
Bid/Ask
|
GOLD |
14,950
- 200
|
|
LENDING
SOMRUEDI BANCHONGDUANG
Credit ratings for Thai retail borrowers are expected to remain relatively high, despite slowing economic growth and weak consumer and business confidence, according to the National Credit Bureau (NCB).
Niwat Kanjanaphoomin, the NCB chief executive officer, said the bureau would implement a new credit scoring system early next year.
Under the new US-developed system, borrowers would be classified with credit scores ranging from 300 to 900 points.
NCB estimates that of the 15 million borrowers listed in its database, over 50% would score over 700 points, a relatively healthy figure that also matched the fact that non-performing loans in the banking system now hovered at around 6% to 7% of total loans.
''Below 700 points is quite negative. We think local debtors, on average, should score better,'' Mr Niwat said.
''Since the 1997 financial crisis, Thais have generally become more financially disciplined, while financial institutions have made considerable strides in developing their risk-management systems.''
Mr Niwat said for comparison, sub-prime mortgage loan borrowers in the US, representing the riskiest borrowers, scored around 620 points under the system.
''But in practice, you cannot compare scores between US borrowers and Thai customers directly. Details are different depending on the economic environment and database used by each country,'' he added.
The national credit agency has invested 20 million baht in the credit scoring system. The NCB posted a first-half net profit of 30 million baht and expects profits for the full year of 60 million, on par with results in 2007.
NCB recorded data transactions for 59 million accounts in the first half of the year, of which 53 million are for individuals. The company's databases recorded an average of 12,000 credit inquiries per month in the first half, an increase of 4,600 from the same period last year.
Mr Niwat said the increase in transactions reflected three factors: increased demand for credit, higher rates of loan rejections by lenders and increased awareness of the NCB and its services.
''Normally, customers who want to apply for a mortgage loan would check their personal credit information first, while personal loan borrowers might look to check their credit record if their application was rejected,'' he said.
Credit information recorded at the NCB is classified into five segments: credit cards, personal loan, hire-purchase loan, mortgage loans and commercial loan and others. Credit card loans account for the largest segment of the NCB's database at 30%, followed by personal loans, hire-purchase loans and mortgage loans at 10% each.
Prev
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
Next
