BTN eyes mortgages for foreigners

February 17, 2016, 07.40 AM | Source: The Jakarta Post
BTN eyes mortgages for foreigners


JAKARTA. Bank Tabungan Negara (BTN), the biggest mortgage provider in Indonesia, plans to launch a specialized mortgage product for foreigners this year, after the government relaxed regulations on foreigners owning property.

The state-owned bank will kick off a limited mortgage program for foreign clients looking to buy apartments. Currently, the bank is studying the loan requirements for serving foreign clients.

"We have the chance to provide mortgages for foreigners. We expect the product to be launched this year," BTN retail funding and distribution director Sis Apik Wijayanto told thejakartapost.com on Monday.

However, he added, BTN would apply a commercial rate for foreign mortgage holders, rather than the interest rate used for public housing loans (KPR). BTN currently charges a commercial rate of around 12 to 12.5 percent for loans with one-year maturity.

"We will charge a commercial rate for foreigners because the KPR rate is aimed at the middle-low segment," Sis explained.

BTN has focused on the middle-low segment for decades. Amid economic slowdown in 2015, the bank increased its net profit by 62 percent year-on-year (yoy) to Rp 1.85 trillion (US$138.2 million).

In the same period, the bank’s disbursed loans rose 19.8 percent (yoy) to Rp 139 trillion; 89.9 percent were mortgages. (Anton Hermansyah)

Editor: Barratut Taqiyyah Rafie

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