According to the Expansão, despite the climate of tension, banks prefer to pay fines (which can reach 150 million kwanzas) rather than assign credits to customers who represent risks of default.
In one of the e-mails to which Expansão had access, the BNA reported that the fines could be increased in cases of recidivism and reminded that compliance with the warning is "mandatory. Also in the same e-mail, the BNA will have indicated that the number of new credits is very low, warning that the imposition of fines is their responsibility.
Several bank administrators and bankers told the newspaper that they were "amazed" at the pressure to comply with the notice, which already represents about 80 percent of Prodesi's funding - a government initiative supported by the central bank, where banks have to allocate part of their assets to help facilitate the process of obtaining credit for the economy, with the aim of boosting domestic production and reducing exports.
They also considered that this attitude goes beyond the limits of the BNA's independence from political power, which will not be viewed favourably by institutions like the World Bank and the IMF.
Instruction no. 21/2020, dated 23 December, accelerated the deadlines for compliance with the granting of credits under Notice no. 10/2020. Since then, according to sources cited by Expansão, pressure on commercial banks has been increasing.
According to the Notice, banks with assets in excess of 1500 million kwanzas have the obligation to allocate financing to at least 50 projects under the Notice. Banks with fewer assets must allocate credits to about 20 projects. However, there are no banks with less than 1500 million kwanzas and, as most of the institutions did not comply with the assumption by the end of last year, the BNA extended the deadline for granting credits until 30 April this year.
However, the banks have been reticent about granting credits, stating that most of the projects submitted are unsecured.
