This archive report was first published on 19 June 2020.
Good News as CRB Unveils Product for Kenyans Stuck With Loans ¶
Metropol Credit Reference Bureau (CRB) has launched a product to help Kenyans struggling to pay loans due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
On June 19, 2020, the institution unveiled the COVID-19 Loan Restructure Product, which enables customers to engage safely and remotely with their lenders to negotiate loan re-structure terms.
According to Group Managing Director Sam Omukoko, the product allows customers to actively and conveniently engage with their respective financial institutions to get the best restructure terms on existing loans.
Omukoko stated, "At Metropol CRB, we understand the need to offer convenience to customers especially at this time when the Government has effected restrictions on movement to prevent the spread of COVID-19. This is why we developed the COVID-19 Loan Restructure Product to enable borrowers in distress to reach out to their creditors for loan restructuring through their mobile phones."
To access the COVID-19 loan restructure product, customers need to download the Metropol Crystobol App and register. Once registered, they can click on the COVID-19 Loan Restructure icon, which will display all their outstanding loans. They can then select the loan they wish to have restructured and their preferred terms and submit their applications to their lenders.
Metropol CRB also launched the Metropol Identity Theft Service (MITS), a premium Short Messaging Service (SMS) that alerts subscribers every time their identity is used to access credit from lenders. The subscription service offers three different types of alerts to subscribed customers: Credit Inquiry Alert, Edit Application Alert, and Metro Score Alert.
The launch of the new products comes against the backdrop of various initiatives rolled out by the Government and Private sector to cushion Kenyans from the harsh effects of the virus. The initiatives include the lowering of the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) to unlock capital for banks to restructure loans of customers who have been affected by COVID on condition that the loans should have been classified as performing assets as at 2 March 2020.
