Banks become more stringent in granting loans to expatriates in Kuwait

The Central Administration of Statistics has issued a report which show the number of expatriates who receive monthly salaries of more than 480 dinars is about 13.48 percent from among the 2.39 million laborers working in Kuwait, 96 percent of who work in the private sector and the rest in the government, reports Al-Rai daily. Sources told the daily the outlook of granting loans to expatriates has changed considerably given the severity of the repercussions of the pandemic, and some banks which were historically known for wholeheartedly lending money to expatriates have become more stringent in their behavior and some banks have returned to adopting a more strict policy in granting loans to this category of people by raising the limits of their salaries — not less than 700 dinars — in addition to fulfilling other traditional conditions.

The sources pointed out that these banks set new limits for the acceptable salaries for granting credit, which stipulates not granting expatriates whose salaries are less than 700 dinars new consumer loans, as well as not scheduling existing finances for these customers, in addition to stopping financing newly-employed expatriates, unless the customer is within a functional guaranteed scope or elite clients. These banks were excluded from the new salary limit for expatriates who possess an end-of-service gratuity sufficient to repay the loan, and work in ministries such as health, education and endowments.

Guaranteeing
Of course, meeting the new salary limit in some banks does not mean guaranteeing its owner’s financing, as it is required for non-workers in ministries that the customer has an end-of-service gratuity that covers all of his premiums, and that he be within a stable job sector that preferably falls under the secure job scope. With the new banking limits for salaries, the segment of residents deprived of funding is increasing, until further notice, bearing in mind that other banks, even before the “Corona” crisis, tended to reduce their share of resident customers, by focusing on Kuwaitis and residents with salaries starting with a thousand dinars.

At the same time, other banks that are also known for welcoming residents have kept their salary limits unchanged, as the sources revealed that the behavior of these banks does not include raising the salary limits, and is satisfied with strictness in other conditions for granting personal loans, not least the quality of the customer, whether in terms of his credit history or the results of analysis of his job status, and other considerations that classify him. The sources indicated that some banks still lend to residents within the usual salary limits, whether they are in a government or private sector, provided that the eligible worker has job stability and maintains a stimulating credit record, indicating that banks are generally converging on the selection of the resident who is eligible for financing although some lending requirements differ from one bank to another.

Financing
It is worth noting that many banks have raised their limits for the salaries of residents’ financing, specifi- cally after the spread of “Corona”, and although they still allow financing residents with salaries starting with 400 dinars, the new financing opportunities for residents with low salaries, specifically less than 350 dinars declined significantly in the portfolios of most banks. It is noteworthy that a study published earlier indicated that Kuwaitis’ share of consumer loans is about 60 percent, compared to 40 percent for non-Kuwaitis, while Kuwaitis’ share of “housing” is 72 percent, compared to 28 percent for non-Kuwaitis.

According to official data, personal facilities increased last November by about 353 million dinars (+1.87 percent) compared to October, to reach 19.22 billion, while they grew 1.97 billion (+11.42%) since the beginning of 2021, and they rose to 2.068 billion (+12.06 percent) compared to November. 2020. Installment loans (housing) witnessed an increase of about 194 million (+1.38 percent) on a monthly basis, to reach 14.252 billion at the end of last November, while it rose by 1.541 billion (+12.12%) since the beginning of 2021, and witnessed an increase of about 1.624 billion (+ 12.86 percent) on an annual basis. As for consumer loans, they increased by 24 million last November, compared to October (+1.34 percent), to reach 1.819 billion, and reached 212 million since the beginning of 2021 (+13.19%), and recorded a growth of 215 million (+13.4 percent) compared to November 2020. Securities purchase loans increased by 178 million on a monthly basis (+6.9 percent) to reach 2.76 billion at the end of November, and increased by 181 million (+7.02 percent) compared to their level at the beginning of the year, and increased by 209 million (+8.19 percent) compared to November 2020.