Mechanism for the VSME
In order to further support bank financing of very small, small and medium-sized enterprises, the Bank decided in 2012 to extend the collateral eligible for monetary policy operations to effects representative of private claims on VSMEs through a new, longer-term refinancing instrument, namely “secured loans”.
As a result of the ongoing difficult economic situation and the continued loans deceleration, and in order to further facilitate access of this category of companies to bank financing, a new support program was implemented at the end of 2013, replacing the abovementioned mechanism. This mechanism allows banks to obtain annual advances from Bank Al-Maghrib equivalent to the volume of loans (excluding real estate development and liberal professions) they plan to grant to VSMEs. They can also benefit from additional refinancing for an amount equal to the volume of loans granted to VSMEs working in the industrial sector or whose production is intended for export. These advances are allocated quarterly for a period of one year.
Due to the covid 19 health crisis, and with a view to cope with the aftermath, Bank Al Maghrib continued implementing these measures to support the economy and strengthened the program to support VSMEs financing by extending refinancing to operation loans, in addition to investment loans. The Bank also increased the frequency of its tenders from quarterly to monthly.