Moldovan National Bank to be able to extend moratorium for banks in financial difficulty by up to one year

Chisinau, 25 March /MOLDPRES/ - The National Bank of Moldova (BNM) will be able to extend the moratorium imposed on commercial banks in crisis for a period not exceeding 12 months. The parliament approved a draft containing provisions to this effect in two readings on 24 March.

Presently, the law establishes that the moratorium may be set for a period of two months, with the possibility to extend it for another two months. After the entry into force of the amendments introduced by MPs on 24 March, the moratorium could be extended for a period not exceeding the term of special administration, which under the current legislation should  not exceed 12 months.

The draft was reviewed and approved at the meeting during which the MPs considered the report of the Committee of Inquiry into the situation on the financial and banking market.

Thus, the amendments adopted will allow the extension of the moratorium in case of Banca de Economii (Savings Bank), Banca Sociala (Social Bank) and Unibank, for which BNM established a special administration regime in 2014.

According to the law on financial institutions, during the moratorium, the interest rates, penalties and other measures of asset liability are not applied; interests set out in the bank's obligations are calculated, but are paid only after the expiration of the moratorium; instituting judicial or administrative proceedings to obtain deposit or debt payments is not allowed; the withdrawal of a shareholder from the bank's shareholders composition is forbidden too.

(Reporter N. Sandu, Editor L. Alcaza)