The Association of Banks in Bulgaria has sent a letter
to the Ministry of Tourism, stating that financial institutions may provide relief to borrowers to service their loans until December 31, 2021 by deferring liabilities for no more than 9 months. This was announced by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism Mariyana Nikolova at a working meeting with The Bulgarian Hotel and Restaurant Association (BHRA) and the Bulgarian Development Bank (BDB).

The purpose of the talks was to discuss options for business support and obtaining loans for companies employed in the tourism industry. The discussion was attended by Panayot Filipov, Executive Director of BDB, Irina Mateva, Chief Expert “External Programs” of BDB, as well as the Chairman of BHRA Georgi Shterev.

According to the Association of Banks, there are no obstacles to individual renegotiation of loans clients from the tourism sector, seeking individual solutions between the bank and the client to overcome the adverse effects of the pandemic.

Panayot Filipov, executive director of BDB, said that attention is paid to each client and loans are rescheduled, including companies from the tourism business. He added that BDB fully understands the problems of the industry and everything possible is being done to help it.

BHRA Chairman Georgi Shterev was adamant that it is necessary to restructure loans in view of the crisis pandemic situation, to find an option for granting working capital for the hotel business to start the tourist season, as well as to provide financial resources through consumer loans. of those employed in the sector so that they do not look for new fields.

Only a few days ago, we announced May 1 for the start of Summer 2021, and there are already rules approved by my order for the operation of accommodation and restaurants and entertainment, said Minister Nikolova. In this regard, the topic of providing working capital to prepare workers for the start of the season is timely and very important, she said. According to her, the earlier the organization of the sector for welcoming tourists during the summer months, the better it will be possible to guarantees a safe and secure holiday for all guests.