Finance, tax data a must for loans

Small and medium businesses should pay more attention to financial and tax reports when applying for loans, HCM City Credit Guarantee Fund deputy head Tran Buu Long said last Saturday.

He was speaking at a discussion in the city, organised by the fund, the Saigon Entrepreneurs Club and the Orient Commercial Joint Stock Bank (OCB).

Long advised enter-prises to improve their capacity to complete financial and tax reports prior to applying for loans.

The reports must be transparent, Long said, not only for the bank and the guarantor but also for future investors in the company.

Companies should also pay taxes on time because overdue tax payments had a negative impact on loan applications.

“Our fund will not issue a credit guarantee to an enterprise with overdue tax bills or tax fines,” Long said.

Maintaining a healthy credit record to keep off the Credit Information Centre blacklist would also assist a loan application, he said.

Also, enterprises should have at least 10 per cent of the capital for the investment project or business plan for which financial assistance was being sought.

This showed the management’s comm-itment to their plans, he said.

Dien Quang Techno- logy Joint Stock Company director Nhu Tin said. many small businesses outsourced their accounting, which was frowned on by banks,

He advised firms to employ their own accounting staff.

OCB deputy general director Tran Hoai Phuong stressed the need for persuasive business plans as well as debt payment plans.

“Banks and credit guarantee organisations need such information,” Phuong said.

Being a member of an organisation like the Sai Gon Entrepreneurs Club would also be an advantage, he said.

National Monetary and Financial Policy Advisory Council member Dr Tran Hoang Ngan said bank credit specialists could advise firms on the most experienced consultant.

The three organisers of the meeting agreed to co-operate to help enterprises gain access to the banks’ capital. — VNS