- Статьи
- Economy
- Collect all the money: MFIs have increased the sale of debts to collectors by 1.5 times
Collect all the money: MFIs have increased the sale of debts to collectors by 1.5 times
Microfinance organizations have significantly increased the sale of debts to collectors. In April—June, they conceded 43 billion loans, which is 1.5 times more than in the previous quarter, and a third more than last year. The amount also turned out to be the maximum in two years, according to the Central Bank's data, which was analyzed by "Izvestia". At the same time, the debt begins to be transferred at earlier stages of delinquency, and the discount on sale already reaches 80%, which indicates a deterioration in the quality of loans. This leads to difficulties for borrowers themselves: collectors are usually more active in collecting debts, and they will have to negotiate restructuring with them on their own. Why MFOs repay debts for nothing and what to do to those who are already in arrears — in the "Izvestia" material.
Why MFIs are more likely to sell debts
In the second quarter, MFIs sold debt collectors for 43 billion rubles, according to the Central Bank. The indicator jumped by 52% compared to January—March and by 32% compared to the same period last year, and market participants began to get rid of debt at an earlier stage of delay or even before it occurred, according to the materials of the Bank of Russia.
Transfer of debts to professional collectors is becoming an increasingly important tool for microfinance organizations to manage distressed assets, experts interviewed by "Izvestia" believe. Instead of a long-term independent recovery, MFIs get the opportunity to return at least part of the funds faster and free up resources to work with the existing portfolio.
The main reason for the increase in sales was the deterioration in the quality of loans, said Maria Ermilova, international financial adviser, Associate Professor of Finance for Sustainable Development at Plekhanov Russian University of Economics. The share of debt overdue for more than 90 days increased from 29% to 35% over the year, according to the Central Bank. This is what makes MFOs get rid of problematic assets faster, the expert is sure.
The situation is aggravated by high rates, added Alexander Abramov, head of the Laboratory for the Analysis of Institutions and Financial Markets at the Presidential Academy. According to him, the combination of expensive loans and uneven income dynamics leads to the fact that more and more people are unable to meet their obligations.
An additional factor was restrictions on the issuance of new loans to the most over-indebted customers, the expert believes. They should prevent a scenario where a person accumulates too much debt and then cannot pay it off. But as a result, this does not give borrowers the opportunity to refinance their accumulated loans. Formally, this is considered a new loan, so the bank must still calculate the debt burden. If the indicator is high, the client will be rejected, even if he is simply trying to reduce the interest rate on his loan after reducing the key rate.
The MFO economy is also affected by regulatory changes, said Sofya Lukinova, Head of the Legal Department at "VMT Consult". Since April, the maximum overpayment on microloans has decreased from 130% to 100%, and since July, approaches to additional services and income verification have changed. At the same time, the delay service is becoming more expensive due to the requirements for the formation of reserves, the expert added.
""At the same time, the increase in the assignment is not an exclusively Russian feature or an emergency measure," the "MiR" SRO told Izvestia. Selling overdue debt is a standard stage of dealing with a distressed asset in the financial market. For MFIs, collection is not a core activity, therefore, after independent work with the client, the debt can be transferred to agency collection, and then sold to a professional collection agency.
The transition of MFIs to the segment of long loans also affects the structure of delinquency, according to the SRO "MiR". Due to legal restrictions, companies have become more active in developing such products instead of short ones.
A long loan has a longer period during which the client's financial situation can change: he may lose part of his income, face new expenses or other circumstances that prevent him from paying according to schedule. Therefore, the previous borrower assessment models, designed primarily for short-term loans, are not always suitable for new products. It takes time for the market to adapt scoring to these risks. The organization expects that over the next two to three quarters, MFIs will better adjust their assessment models, and the delinquency rate will stabilize.
Debts are sold at a discount of 80%
MFOs are also starting to sell loans at an increasing discount. Over the year, it has grown from 64% to 80%, according to the Central Bank. At this discount, the collector pays about 20 kopecks for each ruble of nominal debt against 36 kopecks a year earlier. This price reflects the quality of the portfolio, as well as future recovery costs and the likelihood that part of the loan will not be repaid, explained Freedom Global analyst Vladimir Chernov.
For the collector, the low purchase price means the opportunity to earn even if only part of the loan is collected. Professional debt collectors use specialized infrastructure and can work longer with a problematic portfolio, Alexander Abramov noted, so a debt purchased for 20% of face value does not mean that the collector expects to receive only this amount.
At the same time, the size of the discount strongly depends on the quality of a particular portfolio. More recent pre-trial debt is noticeably more expensive than old debts that have already reached court: the former has a higher probability of foreclosure and lower future costs for the buyer. "Therefore, "pre-trial portfolios with a delay period of up to 180 days can cost about three times more expensive than similar debts at the judicial stage, "Izvestia" was informed in the NAPKA SRO.
Currently, about 89% of the debt sold is at the pre-trial stage. This means that most of the portfolios put on the market belong to the higher-quality part of problem debts. But even such portfolios are sold at a large discount due to the possible risks.
At the same time, according to Alexander Ermolaev, head of the USV collection agency (fintech holding Finbridge), the market has just returned to a more typical discount level for classical microfinance.
What does the sale of debt to collectors mean for the borrower
For the debtor, the main consequence of the assignment is the change of the party to whom he must pay the debt. By itself, the transfer of the right of claim does not change the terms of the original contract, said Vladimir Chernov. The new lender cannot independently raise the rate, add a commission, or increase the amount of obligations.
Nevertheless, the sale of the loan may mean the transfer of debt to a more active stage of recovery. Collection agencies specialize in such work and have a lot of resources for it, Sofya Lukinova emphasized.
However, the rights of the borrower in the transfer of debt are protected. Professional collectors are required to comply with the requirements of Law No. 230-FZ, which limits the ways and frequency of interaction with the debtor, explained Maria Ermilova. For example, face—to-face meetings are allowed no more than once a week, and telephone conversations are allowed no more than once a day, twice a week, and eight times a month. The law also prohibits recoverers from threatening the debtor and his relatives, applying physical or psychological pressure, misleading him about the amount of debt, the consequences of default, or his status.
In case of violations, the expert recommends saving documents, messages, and recordings of conversations and contacting the Federal Bailiff Service (FSSP), the Central Bank, or law enforcement agencies.
On the other hand, the collection agency may agree to installments, change the payment schedule or write off part of the debt, explained Ekaterina Kazak, CEO of Cyberbird Fintech Group. However, it is not obligated to automatically provide such benefits. Unlike a bank or an MFI, which themselves often offer the borrower a restructuring plan or other options for a peaceful settlement, the collector usually does this only after the request of the debtor himself.
A person should remember that the collector has an incentive to negotiate, and the portfolio purchased at a discount makes it possible to economically justify restructuring or partial write-off, said Sofya Lukinova.
Therefore, the first step after selling the debt to the borrower is to make sure that the right of claim has indeed passed to the new lender, check the collection agency in the FSSP registry and request a debt calculation taking into account the payments already made, advises Vladimir Chernov. After that, you can suggest a schedule that corresponds to your actual financial capabilities. At the same time, the expert does not recommend taking out a new expensive micro-loan to repay the old debt.
NAPCA expects further growth of the cession market: According to the organization's preliminary estimate, the volume of closed transactions this year may exceed 100 billion rubles. For MFIs, this means further development of sales as a tool for managing distressed assets, and for collectors, an increase in the volume of portfolios for collection.
The borrower should remember that it is not worth postponing the solution of the problem after receiving the notification of the assignment. The sooner a person checks a new debt, evaluates their capabilities and agrees on a feasible schedule, the more opportunities they have to resolve the issue without going to court.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
