RBI offers fresh loan moratorium to Individual, small borrowers having loans up to Rs 25 crore

New Delhi: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das on Wednesday provided 2nd window to individual, small borrowers having up to Rs 25 crore loans for restructuring loans if not availed earlier.

The moratorium will be available to individuals and small and medium enterprises that have not restructured their loans in 2020 and were classified as standard accounts till March 2021, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said.

"Borrowers i.e. individuals and small businesses and MSMEs having aggregate exposure of upto Rs 25 crore and who have not availed restructuring under any of the earlier restructuring frameworks, and who were classified as `Standard` as on March 31, 2021 shall be eligible to be considered under Resolution Framework 2.0," Das said.

Restructuring under the proposed framework may be invoked up to September 30, 2021 and shall have to be implemented within 90 days after invocation.

In respect of individual borrowers and small businesses who have availed restructuring of their loans under Resolution Framework 1.0, where the resolution plan permitted moratorium of less than two years, lending institutions are being permitted to use this window to modify such plans to the extent of increasing the period of moratorium or extending the residual tenor up to a total of 2 years.

RBI Governor, addressing a videoconference said that the situation has reversed from being on foothills of strong economic recovery to facing a fresh crisis.

Das said that the central bank will continue to monitor situation from resurgence of COVID-19 cases and will deploy all resources and instruments at its command especially for the citizens, business entities, and institutions beleaguered by the second wave.

RBI Governor also announced Rs 50,000 cr priority lending by banks for hospitals, oxygen suppliers, vaccine importers, COVID drugs by March 31, 2022.

In view of fresh challenges, Small Finance Banks are now permitted to regard fresh on-lending to MFIs with asset size up to Rs 500 crore, as priority sector lending, facility available up to 31 March, 2022.

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