Banks turn from villains to heroes in battle on pandemic
Monday, June 1, 2020 0:01
By CAROL MUSYOKA
The banking industry is often the bellwether for the economic health of a country.
I often opined on this column that the same people who regarded banks as nefarious in their reluctance to give loans were the same ones who wouldn’t loan their own shillings to a wayward neighbour that needed working capital to run his kiosk.
I further opined that the very money people were lusting for to be given at low interest rates for loans was their very own money that they had deposited in the banking industry.
In the last two months, the same banking industry has come to the rescue in the tune of hundreds of billions of loans that have had to be restructured due to the economic downturn that has affected millions of borrowers.
This step by the banks is a defensive strategy to batten down the hatches and conserve cash for the balance sheet onslaught that is sure to come from the loan restructurings.
