National Bank of Romania Relaxes Lending Regulations, But Not Enough

The final draft of the regulation for lending to the population, adopted by the NBR (National Bank of Romania), is "less restrictive" than was initially expected, but bankers also have provisions they are unsatisfied with, Ziarul Financiar reported.

"I am happy about what has been achieved, but there are still things I find inconvenient. The most unfortunate thing is that all restrictions apply almost indiscriminately, without distinguishing between consumer and mortgage loans," said Radu Ghetea, chairman of the Romanian Banking Association (ARB).

The NBR has maintained the requirement that the eligible income should be no more than 20% higher than the income declared by the client to the fiscal authorities in the previous year, an income which needs to be certified by the tax return given by the employer, so that the one approved by the Finance Ministry is no longer necessary.