SME Bank’s lending soars

The total value of loans approved by the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Bank (SMEs Bank) in the first 10 months of this year rocketed by 99.96 per cent over the same period last year to 33.61 billion baht, bank president Soros Sakornwissawa said on Wednesday.

"The loans helped 7,282 manufacturers access financial resources, preserved 78,143 jobs and created 1,287 new manufacturers,” Mr Soros said.

He said 36 per cent of the loans were made to manufacturers in the production sector, 21 per cent were to retail and wholesale businesses, 16 per cent to hotels and restaurants, and the remainder to other business sectors.

The combined loans made to the production sector by all commercial banks over the same period was only 21 per cent. This showed that the SME Bank had complied with the Industry Ministry’s policy to provide financial assistance for the SMEs affected by the global financial meltdown, he said.