Reflecting to the Người Lao Động newspaper, Ms. K.Ngân (from Thu Duc City) said that in July 2023, she borrowed 2.5 billion VND from Standard Chartered Bank to buy a house in Ho Chi Minh City (the second property). The collateral was another house (the first property) with all the necessary documents. The preferential interest rate in the first year was 8.5% per year and 9.75% in the second year, as Ms. K.Ngân had purchased life insurance.
The condition for enjoying this preferential interest rate after disbursement is “providing a copy of the certificate of ownership/usage rights of the purchased assets that have been transferred to the client or a copy of the relevant tax receipt for the transfer”.
After purchasing the house with the bank’s capital, there were complications in transferring ownership from the seller to Ms. K.Ngân. The reason being, the house had an unfinished part that had not been granted a permit, so it could not be taxed.
The interest rate for home loans for Ms. K.Ngân is as high as 15% per year, much higher than the current interest rate for new home loans of around 7-9% per year and the interest rate for existing loans of 10-12% per year at other banks
“The name on the certificate is the previous homeowner’s, not the person who sold it to me. Therefore, I haven’t completed this confirmation yet. After 30 days, the bank’s staff said that my interest rate would increase, and I would not receive any preferential treatment if I did not provide the documents by November 2023. In January 2024, I received a notice that I had to pay an interest rate of up to 15% per year. The monthly interest payment went from 21.69 million VND to 32.77 million VND, which was shocking” – Ms. K.Ngân expressed her frustration.
According to this customer, the highest deposit interest rate at Standard Chartered is currently 3.3% per year for a 36-month term. In the initial announcement, with the mentioned preferential loan packages, the floating interest rate was 12% per year, but Ms. K.Ngân’s loan interest rate increased to 15% per year. She has filed a complaint with the bank but has not received an official response yet.
“My loan package is for buying the second property, mortgaged by the first property at this bank, which is completely legitimate. The mistake of buying the wrong property because the documents have not been processed to be named after the rightful owner is my loss as the borrower. In this case, the bank has not suffered any damages. Because if I do not repay the loan, the bank can seize the property – the first asset used as collateral. At the time of notarization based on the sales contract, the bank disbursed the funds to the buyer’s account” – Ms. K.Ngân questioned.
Người Lao Động newspaper reporters have contacted Standard Chartered regarding the above case. The bank explained: “In this case, the bank has been and is currently following the regulations, based on the referenced terms of the loan agreement signed with the customer. The relevant departments of Standard Chartered are continuing to closely cooperate to support the customer in the best possible way”.
According to the regulations and confidentiality agreements signed with customers, the bank does not provide detailed information about this incident.
According to the investigation by Người Lao Động, customer K.Ngân’s interest rate for the loan was increased from 8.5% per year to 15% per year because after 30 days, she could not provide the documents to transfer ownership of the second property in her name.
“The inability to provide the documents due to complications in the ownership transfer process is my fault. However, the contract also clearly states that “the bank has the right and will conduct inspections and monitoring of the use of borrowed capital and debt repayment by customers.” I am still making full principal and interest payments every month, not deviating from the intended purpose, so why am I still subject to such high interest rates?” – Ms. K.Ngân raised the issue.
Người Lao Động newspaper will continue to report on this case.
