Banks overwhelmed by high student loan applications

Banks are overwhelmed with the number of school and university loan applications they have been receiving in recent months.

"Since June 2014 we have been submerged with the demands of school and university credits.This is our first experience at the request of our customers and almost all crowd our agencies," said an official of Afriland First Bank last Friday in Yaoundé.

It is the same situation at the International Bank of Cameroon for savings and credit (Bicec) and at the Union Bank of Cameroon (UBC), as in other commercial banks, since the same period.

One banker said: "Credit applications are open from June to October 2014 to allow our customers, including parents, well prepared receipts for their children and to be able to repay their loans in ten months."

A parent of student says: "It is now that we must prepare to avoid running in all directions at the last minute. I asked for 500,000 FCFA to pay for tuition and school supplies, "says a student parent.

To entice customers, each bank has their own methods of advertising that seem to be working pretty well.

"Currently, we have 13,000 cases granted for about seven billion francs," said an official of the Bicec. "We have already disbursed nearly three billion francs and it will continue."

In each of these institutions, these loans are granted on the salary of the customer within 48 hours of request, along with other requirements for a minimum guarantee.

Other factors in the application for credit include irrevocable proof of the bank transfer, contract to contract or when the ministerial decision for officials of the certificate of physical presence in place of duty, a payslip dated within three months, the maximum amount of credit equal to 1/3 of salary multiplied by ten and the number of months it will take the credit.

At UBC, for example, the annual rate of return is 15 per cent plus VAT. That means as an illustration for a credit of one million FCFA, interest will be $125,000 plus 24,063 FCFA, so the customer will have to pay a total of 1,149,063 FCFA.