Russian banks may adjust their approaches to borrowers due to the entry into force of the law, according to which the Central Bank may impose direct bans on the issuance of certain types of unsecured loans, RBC said, citing bank representatives. The corresponding law was signed in December 2021 by Russian President Vladimir Putin, and the introduction of new measures is scheduled for July 1.
The Bank of Russia plans to limit the issuance of long-term loans for a period of more than five years and the work of banks with borrowers whose debt burden is more than 80%, that is, who give more than 80% of their income to repay the loan.
The first deputy chairman of the board of Sovcombank, Sergei Khotimskiy, called the proposed restrictions reasonable. However, in his opinion, such a measure will reduce the availability of credit in the market, and some of its players may register an increase in overdue debt. Khotimsky noted that the Central Bank should reduce these shares in the future carefully, so as not to inflict significant blows on credit availability.
Raiffeisenbank called this measure an artificial limitation of lending. According to Aleksey Kramarsky, the head of the bank’s retail segment credit risk department, the Central Bank’s restrictions will negatively affect the availability of loans, because clients who are able to service a loan may be refused or an increased rate.
VTB said it would adjust its risk policy if restrictions were introduced. Such a measure can make the process of obtaining a loan less convenient for clients who apply for a loan online, because it is more difficult for a bank to determine the real amount of borrowers’ income remotely.
A representative of MTS Bank said that the bank will make minor changes to its lending policy. After the introduction of restrictions, the bank expects an increase in refusals to issue loans. Evgeny Ivanov, director of the retail risk department of Promsvyazbank, said that banks would adjust their risk policies, but at the same time focus on programs with more flexible conditions for specific clients.
Earlier, the Central Bank published preliminary parameters of direct restrictions on the issuance of consumer loans, which may come into effect from July 2022. It is assumed that the share of consumer loans with a debt burden (PDR) of more than 80% can be limited for banks to 25% of all unsecured loans. for microfinance organizations (MFOs) – 35%. The right to introduce direct limits for banks and MFOs for issuing loans from the Central Bank appeared after the State Duma passed the relevant law in November.
.