Ministry of Finance has revealed SME Development Finance Corporation (SDFC) has disbursed loans for 1,427 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) under the COVID-19 Recovery Loan Scheme introduced by the government to assist local businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The statistics of the finance ministry showed SDFC released USD 12.86 million to 1,427 SMEs by the end of July 27. The ministry revealed 2,983 applicants sought loans from SDFC although 1,711 applications were approved.
SDFC said most applications were received from retail business owners and sole proprietors. In this regard, 658 retail businesses were provided with loans amounting to over USD 10.1 million and 494 sole proprietors were released loans amounting to USD 954,706.
The government introduced an economic relief package to prevent local businesses from going bankrupt amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The relief loans are provided through SDFC and the Bank of Maldives (BML).