The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has earmarked $25 million for loans for the Philippines’ small- and medium-size enterprises (SMEs). Merly Cruz, regional director of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) in Southern Mindanao, said “The ADB is studying how it can participate in trying to address the financing gap of the SMEs in the country,” she said. The financial assistance is for “non-bankable, but viable projects.
“So, between the lines, you can read that they are not requiring collateral, relying heavily on the feasibility and viability of the project,” she said.
This is a good opportunity for the SMEs in the country because banks and other lending institutions under the SME Unified Lending Opportunity for National Growth (Sulong) programme are hesitant to extend loans without collateral.
