(Photo by Wichan Charoenkiatpakul)Applications have been filed for picofinance licences in 75% of provinces, with provinces in the South noticeably absent, the Fiscal Policy Office said on Monday. Finance Ministry officials would visit the provinces to promote picofinance and would target informal lenders, he said. The Finance Ministry opened to applications for picofinance licences on Dec 1 last year. Each licensee can lend up to 50,000 baht to each customer, and charge up to 36% annual interest, which is way lower than the interest rates of loan sharks, Mr Krisda said. Police had arrested 62 loan sharks in the recent crackdown.

Source: Bangkok Post April 10, 2017 10:30 UTC