State Duma passes bill limiting maximum retail loans

MOSCOW, Dec 19 (PRIME) -- The State Duma, Russian parliament’s lower chamber, passed a bill limiting retail debts and forbidding debt reclaim by underground creditors on Wednesday.

Under the bill, interest and fines on retail loans taken for between 15 days and one year will be curtailed gradually with the highest payment limited to 2.5 times as high as the borrowed amount from the moment the bill enters in force, 2 times from July 1, 2019 and 1.5 times from January 1, 2020.

The interest rate shall not exceed 1.5% daily from the entrance in force, 1% from July 1, 2019. From July 1, 2019 the full cost of a loan shall not exceed by more than a third the smaller of the two: 365% annually or an average market full cost of the loan in annual percentage calculated by the central bank.

The maximum payment for loans taken for a term until 15 days not exceeding 10,000 rubles is 30,000 rubles. No penalties except a 0.1% daily finee for each day of delay shall be accrued. The daily payment shall not exceed 1/15 of the maximum payment.

The bill will enter in force in 30 days since approval by all relevant authorities and publication.

(66.6208 rubles – U.S. $1)

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