Smedan Loan Disbursement News Today 16, May 2024
Smedan Loan Disbursement News Today 16, May 2024
SMEDAN starts disbursing N5 billion to SMEs.
Small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) have reportedly begun to utilize the N5 billion single-digit interest rate loan that SMEDAN, the Nigerian Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency, obtained from Sterling Bank.
SMEDAN did note that assistance is being provided to help overcome the obstacles that certain SMEs are encountering when attempting to meet the bank’s eligibility requirements.
The managing director of Sterling Bank, Abubakar Suleiman, was contacted by Charles Odii, director-general of SMEDAN, on Monday to discuss the problems.
According to Odii, the bank ascribed the challenges to formalization problems and other qualifying-related reasons. “I had a meeting with the MD/CEO of Sterling Bank and other officials yesterday to talk about the SMEDAN-Sterling loan program.
This program gives small businesses access to financing by offering ₦5 billion at a single-digit interest rate,” he wrote on X. “Although payments have been made and are still being made, I brought up the issues we had regarding the application procedure and the challenges some applicants had in getting to the payment stage.
“The bank clarified the formalization problems and other obstacles that certain businesses faced to achieve their eligibility requirements.
We agreed on a plan of action to deal with this, which included answering applicants’ queries clearly both online and in-person at bank branches, supporting applicants who failed the eligibility test by addressing the contributing causes and offers and offering ongoing improvements to the digital platform for a smooth experience.
“Supporting small businesses and making sure the loan opportunity is fully maximized for business growth remains our shared goals.”
Odii said the organization will get in touch with the chosen candidates to keep track of their development and provide customized assistance to guarantee the opportunity is taken advantage of.
SMEDAN and Sterling Bank inked a deal on November 22 to offer N5 billion in loans to small enterprises nationwide.
