THE Namibia Financial Institutions’ Supervisory Authority (Namfisa) has warned microlenders to refrain from retaining customers’ national identity cards (IDs), bank cards and personal identification numbers (pins) as assurance for timely repayments.
Namfisa’s manager for corporate communications and consumer education Victoria Muranda last week told Nampa that microlenders were not allowed to take possession of customers’ ATM cards or pins.
“Microlenders have been directed in Circular No II/ML/2/2011, dated 22 December 2011, by the authority not to retain consumers’ bank cards and pins as this practice of collecting money due to cash loans is illegal and prohibited,” she stated.
Muranda reminded cash loan companies to adhere to Government Notice 196 of 2004 which stipulated that the maximum interest to be charged by microlenders should not exceed two times the average prime rate.
Namibia’s prime rate is 10,75%, and Muranda said the maximum interest to be charged may not exceed 21,50% annually.
She thus urged customers to inform Namfisa of microlenders which do not adhere to the regulations.
Muranda said 277 registered microlenders operated under Namfisa’s gaze, while 55 were deregistered in 2016 due to various factors such as non-compliance with registration conditions, dormancy and on voluntary request.
She said during the third quarter of 2016, Namfisa statistics revealed that more than N$850 million had been disbursed to consumers by microlenders in Namibia.
Owner of Pika Quickloans, Albert Georg Piechazwk, told Nampa yesterday that he was not aware of the practice of retaining clients’ personal documents, cards and pins.
“We do not keep clients’ ID cards, nor bank pins, which is against the rules,” he said.
He added that clients were required to provide a consultant with an ID, bank statements of the last three months and their latest payslip for the microlender to make copies, all of which were returned to the owners.
– Nampa
