Since the commencement of the ongoing COVID-19 Targeted Credit Facility (TCF), one of the critical questions some of the prospective applicants ask is: what is the interest rate of the CBN-backed NMFB loan?
- COVID-19 interest rate: 5%-9% per annum
As you know, the credit facility is disbursed to applicants by Nirsal Micro Finance Bank (NMFB), a Central Bank Nigeria licensed institution offering loans for multiple purposes in Nigeria.
If you applied and got approval for N500,000, how much would you return back to the government when the time is ripe?
We want to quickly point out what you need to know before taking NMFB credit facility. They are:
- Moratorium
- Tenor
Intro:
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) kick-started the COVID-19 NMFB loan in 2020 with N50 billion Targeted Credit Facility (TCF) as a stimulus package to support households and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Today, the TCF has been expanded to N300Billion to accommodate more SMEs and households as they continue to see the positive effect of the loan on businesses across Nigeria.
Objectives of the TCF
Some of the objectives of the TCF are:
- cushion the adverse effects of COVID-19 on households
- cushion the adverse effects of COVID-19 on MSMEs;
- supporting households and MSMEs whose economic activities have been affected by the coronavirus
- stimulate credit to MSMEs to expand their productive capacity through equipment upgrades among others.
Method of application:
1) Qualified households or MSMEs shall submit applications directly via NIRSAL portal via https://nmfbloans.nmfb.com.ng/nmfbloanapplicationportal
2) Applicants must have evidence of livelihood which has been adversely impacted by COVID-19
3) Existing enterprises with verifiable evidence of business activities adversely affected as a result of the pandemic.
4) After your application is successfully submitted, NMFB will appraise and conduct due diligence on your applications
5) Upon satisfactory appraisal of applications, NMFB will forward the applications to the CBN for approval
6) The CBN reviews applications and gives approval for disbursement to NMFB.
7) Your NMFB account is credited.
8) And finally, you transfer the loan to your conventional bank account. You can begin your application on our previous post on Targeted Credit Facility.
How much can I borrow from COVID-19 TCF?
- SMEs: up to N25million
- Household: up to N1million or N3million depending on the nature of the application.
How much will I pay as interest on CBN NMFB Loan?
This is when loan terms like moratorium and tenor come in. And you are going to definitely come across these terms in the course of your application process.
NMFB Loan Moratorium
A moratorium is a period during a loan term when the borrower is not obligated to make a payment.
In layman’s term, a moratorium is a waiting period before the borrower starts making fixed monthly payments.
A moratorium for COVID-19 TCF is 36 months maximum. So, what does this mean?
Moratorium period example
If you chose 24 months moratorium during the application, it means you have two years to effectively utilise the money for your business before you start paying back.
If your loan is disbursed in January 2021, for instance, the repayment will start by January 2023. In real estate, this period is called EMI holiday. If you like, call this COVID-19 holiday.
However, interest accrues during the moratorium period and the borrower must pay it.
NMFB Loan Tenor
The tenor is the length of time until a loan is due. For example, a loan is taken out with a 12 months tenor, you have a year to repay. After 6-month passes, the tenor of the loan is six months.
According to a memo by the apex bank, the “term loan shall have a maximum tenor of not more than 3 years”
Mode of repayment
Repayment shall be made on an installment basis by the beneficiaries to the NMFB according to the nature of the enterprise and the repayment schedule/work plan provided at the application stage.
You might want to ask…what’s the interest rate of the COVID-19 loan?
The interest rate under the intervention is 9% p.a. (all-inclusive) from 1st March 2021.
Example:
If you received N500, 000 household loan with a year tenor, it means you would pay N545,000
9% of N500K is N45,000
If you effectively utilised the loan during the moratorium period (say 2 years), you could make an arrangement with NMFB official to be paying back N45,416.7k monthly for a period of 12 months. Check our guide on how to calculate the interest rate on business loan
In this case: The Principle is N500,000 while N45,000 is the interest
Key takeaway:
Choose wisely the moratorium period before submitting a loan application for the COVID-19 TCF
If you chose one year tenor, it means you have 12 months period to repay the loan.
The COVID-19 credit facility is not a grant, it a loan that must be paid back, we urge you to plan well with the loan, expand your business and stand a chance to apply for more.
The interest rate of most of the commercial banks in Nigeria is between 20%-30%, so, we believe that the CBN-COVID-19 loan is the MOST SME-friendly credit facility you can get in Nigeria right now, we urge you to make good use of it.
Am I eligible for this loan? I was critically sick during the first phase of Covid-19, hospitalised but later came around. Though I was not diagnosed for any Covud related symptoms. Now my business has been crippled by the sickness..
– Olohunkemi Abiodun Saliu
Oh sorry about that Saliu,
You can apply on the nmfb portal for the loan. Every Nigeria is qualified.
Wishing you well being in your great work for helping the Nigerian but up to now I didn’t hear from you no calling no alert but I hope I shall be hear the alert God bless you for your great work hear from you thank you