Claudine Housen, Staff Reporter
WESTERN BUREAU:
IN ITS bid to create added loan options to the business community, National Commercial Bank (NCB) has launched a new product which will give card merchants the opportunity to obtain loans based on their future income.
Titled the NCB Merchant Advance Credit Line, the product is geared towards small to medium business operators who use NCB card terminals and would like to access business loans.
LEVERAGE FUTURE EARNINGS
"This product allows card merchants to leverage their future earning from card transaction by accessing credit from NCB, through loans, overdrafts or credit cards against these receivables," explained NCB Managing Director, Patrick Hylton.
He was addressing a gathering of small business owners during a NCB financial forum in Negril recently.
Noting that access to credit and more efficient cash flow management are the primary constraints affecting small businesses, Mr. Hylton said that Merchant Advance's upfront access to future income with no collateral down would be immensely beneficial to small business owners.
REVOLUTIONARY
"We all understand and can relate to not being able to provide the traditional collateral requirements," he said. "NCB Merchant Advance is revolutionary in this regard and makes borrowing easier."
According to Mr. Hylton qualifying for a loan requires two years business experience and a total credit and debit card sales of at least J$2 million or US$50,000 for each of the last two years.
One small business owner, restaurateur, Angella Thompson, said, "A lot of people use credit cards now and, therefore, your cash flow comes through credit cards. So, I think this was a brilliant idea by NCB to accommodate small business people like me."
