An introduction to personal loans in Singapore

Singapore is one of the world’s leading financial centers and the island nation’s banks offer a wide range of banking products, solutions and services, including personal loans. These loans are designed to help the people of Singapore meet their financial needs. The interest rates offered can be quite attractive and customers also enjoy flexible repayment terms to repay the amount borrowed. It is not only Singapore banks and financial institutions that offer personal loans in Singapore. In fact, there are many licensed and unlicensed lenders offering personal loans in the country.

Types of personal loans

There are different types of personal loan products that are available in ‘Lion City’ and they are as follows:

1. Term loans – These are traditional loan products that offer clients the money they need and also require them to repay the money with the applicable interest within the term specified in the contract they sign. They are mainly offered by traditional banks and financial institutions in the country.

2. Loans against Credit Card – Many of the credit card issuers in Singapore offer their customers instant cash against the available credit on their card. Loan applications are approved in no time and the money is transferred directly to the applicant’s bank account. In most cases, customers can borrow up to 100 percent of their card’s available credit.

3. Personal line of credit – Some of the popular banks operating in the country, such as Maybank, do not offer personal loans and instead offer a personal line of credit that gives people access to funds on a monthly basis. It is a type of revolving credit that requires customers to make monthly payments to access more funds.

4. Overdraft Protection – OCBC Bank and other major banks in Singapore offer overdraft protection service with your savings account with the help of which you can withdraw more money than is available in your account. The additional money withdrawn is considered a loan and customers are expected to repay it through equal monthly installments (EMI).

Banks offering personal loans in Singapore

Some of the main banks that offer personal loans in Singapore are the following:

• OCBC Bank;
• U.O.B.;
• DBS bank;
• HSBC Singapore;
• ANZ Singapore;
• Citibank, etc

The application process

If you are an adult with stable income and a good credit score, you can approach any of the country’s banks and apply for a personal loan. You can visit any of their branches or contact their customer service team. Some of them will also offer you the option to apply for the loan online on their website.

loan amount

The amount offered will depend on your annual income, credit history and general profile as a borrower. You can expect to borrow a larger amount if you have a high annual income along with a lucrative credit score. Similarly, the interest rates offered to you will also depend on the factors mentioned above and you can get a better rate if you are one of the bank’s loyal customers, that is, if you have already opted for other products offered by the bank.