A third of the 20 billion francs in aid that the Confederation Advance in favor of the economy in the coronavirus crisis has been allocated. Banks have already received more than 30,000 requests for small loans. The amount released may be increased.
Sunday evening, some 6.6 billion francs had been accepted, said Monday Eric Jakob, head of the Directorate of Economic Promotion of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO). The average amount of credits is 207,000 francs. A total of 31,853 agreements were requested from 115 banks. Amounts up to 500,000 francs are paid immediately by the banks.
On the other hand, there have not yet been any effective requests for larger loans, namely 500,000 to 20 million francs. Requests were made, but they were incomplete, said Eric Jakob.
Quick Credits
The Confederation provides 20 billion for SMEs facing liquidity problems to obtain bank loans. The companies concerned can quickly and easily access loans representing up to 10% of their turnover or an amount of up to CHF 20 million.
These measures, intended for businesses and the self-employed, should enable them to cover their fixed costs for the coming months and to supplement short-time working and allowances for loss of earnings, recalled Eric Jakob.
It is possible that the amount made available by the Confederation will be increased faster than expected. Finance Minister Ueli Maurer has not ruled out such a possibility. The file is in the hands of his department.
The Confederation’s website dedicated to business assistance is running at full speed. It has had more than 300,000 visits and more than 130,000 forms have already been downloaded since last Thursday.
Use of partial unemployment
No solution has yet been found for independents who escape the cracks, said Eric Jakob. SECO seeks to correct this situation, which particularly affects the self-employed who have no company or those who contribute to family income by working irregularly.
The use of partial unemployment is increasing massively. Currently, 15.6% of the working population is affected in Switzerland, noted Eric Jakob. Ticino has made the largest number of applications. Almost 40% of employees are currently on partial unemployment.
The Confederation has not noticed an increase in layoffs. Partial unemployment makes it possible to avoid unfair dismissals, according to the expert. Currently, the unemployment rate is 2.9%. (ats / nxp)
Created: 30.03.2020, 19h38
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