Exim Bank bids to fill financing gap

Exim Bank will emphasise cooperation between the public and private sectors in providing various forms of assistance to small and medium-sized enterprises including export credit insurance and capacity-building in preparation for the unfolding of the Asean Economic Community in 2015, president Kanit Sukonthaman told a news conference yesterday.

The bank’s net profit last year rose 81.8 per cent to Bt1.1 billion from Bt605 million in the previous year mainly on higher interest income after the expansion of medium-to-long-term loans for investment projects conducive to national development and lower operating and interest expenses thanks to better cost management. 

The bank saw steady improvements in its asset quality and financial stability, with non-performing loans declining 15.8 per cent to Bt2.8 billion. The ratio of NPLs to outstanding loans fell from 5.10 per cent to 4.22 per cent. Bad-debt reserves to NPLs increased by 56.8 per cent to 146.75 per cent, or Bt1.9 billion above the International Accounting Standard 39, reflecting increased financial strength and risk management capability.

Exim Bank says it has steadfastly supported government policies through the promotion of international trade and investment both at home and abroad, and the protection of exporters’ risks through credit insurance.

Last year, the bank approved Bt11.73 billion in trade finance, of which Bt4.7 billion was for SMEs. Export-import financing facilities reached Bt142.95 billion, with Bt15.18 billion in short-term working capital loans, down by Bt2.51 billion from the previous year. 

The drop in short-term loans resulted from a shift in portfolio emphasis to SMEs, which maintain smaller credit lines than large exporters, as well as a slowdown in shipments to major markets such as the United States and the European Union and more aggressive campaigns by commercial banks to woo its SME customers by giving them better access to their credit products. 

The bank will concentrate more on traders unable to secure loans from commercial banks while avoiding areas already well served by those banks, Kanit said. It has also prepared special measures to enhance customers’ liquidity as necessary, including an interest-rate break for delayed-payment and export-bill negotiation.

The bank organised a year-around series of seminars and training sessions to impart basic knowledge to start-up SMEs in various provinces such as Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Khon Kaen, Chon Buri and Songkhla. It also offered workshops on export-risk management at its head office. More than 1,500 participants nationwide benefited from the training programmes.

The bank approved Bt10.45 billion in loans for energy, alternative energy, logistics, infrastructure and public utilities development projects as well as production expansion. Of this total, Bt5.17 billion was for the Finance Ministry’s Financial Assistance for Maritime Business Promotion Scheme to develop the national shipping fleet.

The bank approved Bt6.98 billion in outbound investment loans, mostly for infrastructure projects in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. The approvals for medium-to-long-term loans added up to Bt17.44 billion and helped drive total loans outstanding up Bt3.74 billion to Bt51.48 billion. 

The bank approved Bt3.57 billion in export credit insurance to help protect exporters from non-payment by buyers facing global economic volatility while shoring up their confidence in expanding business to both existing and new markets abroad.

The bank’s export credit insurance turnover edged up 0.2 per cent to Bt135.07 billion, while it ended the year with Bt34.02 billion in outstanding insurance.