The proposed small- and medium-scale industry (SMI) Debt Restructuring Committee (SDRC) is expected to strengthen the SMI sector and improve banks' asset quality.
Analysts said the SDRC would be a useful mechanism to achieve speedier resolution to bad debts between creditors and SMI debtors.
By rescheduling the non-performing loans (NPLs) of the small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the SDRC will allow SMEs to concentrate on their businesses and thrive.
Bumiputra-Commerce Bank Bhd (BCB) sees the move as part of the government's overall strategy to develop SMEs in the country. "This mechanism would be particularly useful for financially-distressed SMEs which have loans from several lenders and may have difficulty in trying to work out separate debt restructuring or rescheduling exercises with individual lenders," BCB senior vice-president (business banking) P. Manoharan said when contacted in Kuala Lumpur.
