KUALA LUMPUR (JUNE 11): United Overseas Bank (Malaysia) Bhd (UOB Malaysia) has extended its Covid-19 Relief Assistance Programme for customers affected by the current Movement Control Order 3.0 (MCO 3.0).

In a statement today, UOB Malaysia said the programme, which was established in March 2020, is being enhanced in line with the government's recent Program Strategik Memperkasa Rakyat dan Ekonomi Tambahan (PEMERKASA+).

Its enhanced relief assistance program is now available to:
• Individuals who lost their job due to the pandemic;
• Individuals whose income has been adversely impacted due to the pandemic;
• Individual customers who are registered under the government's Bantuan Sara Hidup (BSH), Bantuan Prihatin Rakyat (BPR) or Bantuan Prihatin Nasional (BPN) aid programmes;
• Microenterprises with loan or financing facilities up to RM150,000;
• Businesses, including micro, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), that are allowed;
• Other businesses that require financial support to overcome difficult circumstances during this period.

The bank said it is providing its customers with repayment relief assistance options which now include a three-month repayment moratorium, reduced monthly repayment instalments by 50% for a period of six months and reduced monthly repayment instalments that commensurate with customers' reduced income for a period of six months.

UOB Malaysia's chief executive officer Wong Kim Choong said that the bank remains committed to supporting its customers in need of financial relief in order to safeguard their livelihoods.

"We will continue our efforts to tailor our relief assistance initiatives so that they are relevant to our customers' specific circumstances. In helping our customers through these trying times, we will help them manage their financial situation and emerge stronger for the recovery to come," he said.

UOB Malaysia advised its customers, whose sources of income are affected by the MCO, to contact the bank in order to assess their financial situation and determine a suitable repayment option.

It said all applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis and added that the acceptance of repayment relief assistance during this period will not affect the customers' Central Credit Reference Information System (CCRIS) report with Bank Negara Malaysia.

The bank noted that as at May 28 2021, UOB Malaysia had received more than 13,000 applicants for repayment relief, with an approval rate of 99%.