Tekun targets 24-hour loan approvals for small businesses

MELAKA, June 21 — Tabung Ekonomi Kumpulan Usaha Niaga (Tekun Nasional) aims to approve financing below RM20,000 within 24 hours, said Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Minister Steven Sim Chee Keong.

Sim said the quick-approval target helps Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) secure working capital immediately.

“We are currently running a pilot project (for financing approvals below RM20,000), and we aim to launch it within the next two to three months.

“We want to offer a 24-hour processing period to facilitate MSMEs… so these small businesses do not have to wait long (to secure financing for working capital),” he told reporters after closing Karnival Hebatkan Perniagaan Malaysia (HPM) at Morten Walk here today.

The event was officiated by Melaka Senior Housing, Local Government, Drainage, Climate Change and Disaster Management Committee chairman Datuk Rais Yasin.

Also present were Deputy Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Minister Datuk Mohamad Alamin, KUSKOP secretary-general Datuk Seri Khairul Dzaimee Daud, and state Entrepreneur Development, Cooperatives and Consumer Affairs Committee chairman Allex Seah Shoo Chin.

At the event, the ministry also launched the Tekun Nasional Portal, a one-stop digital platform that enables entrepreneurs to obtain financing information, submit online applications, access programme and entrepreneurship training announcements, and locate Tekun Nasional offices nationwide.

Meanwhile, the ministry said in a statement that Tekun Nasional financing applications up to RM100,000 are processed and approved within seven days. SME Bank and Bank Rakyat are also committed to processing and approving financing up to RM1 million within 14 days.

As of May 31, the ministry had approved RM92 million in financing to over 4,300 entrepreneurs in Melaka through its various agencies.

Nationally, as of the same date, the ministry had approved RM5 billion in financing, benefiting more than 180,000 enterprises nationwide.

According to the statement, the ministry targets disbursing RM15 billion in financing to MSMEs nationwide under the PowerUp10k initiative this year.

The three-day HPM carnival, which began on Friday (June 19), ended today. — Bernama