Hansabankas offers new loan for students
2008-02-06 Back
As the Bank continues developing its youth program, ZOOM, it has offered a new product to higher school students - a loan to cover their daily expenses. The so-called ‘student loan’ was designed with the view to helping students to concentrate on studies and repay the debts after graduation from higher school. Qualified for such a loan are all students, participants of Zoom program, who have turned 18 and are studying at Lithuanian higher (university) schools. Student loans will be paid out (disbursed) in parts on a monthly basis, and the period of all payouts and discharge of the debt is set to continue for 10 years, during which repayment of the loan will start after graduation from higher school (after which the borrowers are expected to be employed).
According to Antanas Danys, Head of Retail Banking Division of Hansabankas, the student loan is a helpful tool for seeking higher education. "In our view, student loans will help young people to plan their expenses more freely; besides, they will not have to sacrifice so much time and energy for activities unrelated with studies. We believe that young borrowers will be able to spend more time for studying and acquiring more modern training aids", noted A. Danys. According to the Bank’s employees, a survey showed that almost every second young man had not been happy with his/her financial situation. Their mean monthly finance ran at around LTL 860: half of it was a financial support received from their parents and other relatives, and the other half – personal earnings. Students were found to have spent much time for doing casual work (or working on a permanent basis) which had a negative impact on quality of their studies.
The paying out of a student loan continues for up to three study years, after which a 2-year grace period is applied, during which students are required to pay the interest only. Student loan must be fully repaid within 5 years after graduation from higher school and the start of employment. A possibility of early debt redemption is envisaged too. An additional surety will be required for the first-year students only.
The student loan is a new service offered under Hansabankas youth program, ZOOM. Access to obtaining of student loans is guaranteed to all higher (university) school students, participants of ZOOM program. Students can become participants of the ZOOM program and complete student loan applications over-the-counter at any Hansabankas branch (during one visit).
Youth program ZOOM was presented at Hansabankas last fall. For schoolchildren and higher school students - the 14—to 23-year olds - a complex program was designed to include banking services and aimed at fostering of the youth’s creativeness and developing of young people’s financial management and investment skills.
