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Licensed money lenders in Singapore are legal private money lenders regulated by the Ministry of Law (MinLaw). As authorised money lenders, they offer a wide variety of legal loans to borrowers in Singapore, including quick short-term loans and personal loans at reasonable interest rates, while adhering to the Moneylenders Act.
If you have the intention to take out a loan from a licensed money lender, it is important to take steps to ensure you are engaging only legal money lenders in Singapore because there is an increasing number of loan and money lender scams here.
Verify the private money lender’s details against the list of licensed money lenders in Singapore available on MinLaw’s website.
For starters, verify the private money lender’s details against the list of licensed money lenders in Singapore available on MinLaw’s website. The local money lender’s company name, contact number, and business address reflected in their documents and money lender licence displayed in the office premise must be the same as those from the regulator’s list.
When in doubt, ask the private money lender for its company registration licence to prove its legitimacy. This will protect you from falling prey to illegal money lenders in Singapore who employ fraudulent lending tactics, harassment and violent behaviours for debt collection.
Avoid any lenders who attempt to market themselves through flyers, SMSes, emails, cold calling, WhatsApp messages, or Telegram messages.
Even if you need a quick loan from a money lender, avoid any lenders who attempt to market themselves through flyers, SMSes, emails, cold calling, WhatsApp messages, or Telegram messages. Licensed private money lenders in Singapore are only permitted to market their services via business or consumer directories in print or online media, their listed websites, and advertisements placed within their registered business premises. If you receive unsolicited promotional messages outside of these three legal channels, chances are they are sent by scammers or illegitimate fast money lenders.
One of the easiest methods to verify if you are dealing with reliable money lenders in Singapore is in the loan interest rates and fees that they impose.
Verify the loan interest rates and fees that they impose.
As a rule of thumb, reliable authorised money lenders in Singapore can only charge a maximum personal loan interest rate of 4% per month.
Late interest and fees are capped at 4% and S$60 per month respectively, while processing fees are limited to up to 10% of the loan sum. The fee structure is regulated by MinLaw. Any lender that goes beyond these fee caps can be charged for unfair practices.
Whether you are looking for a licensed online money lender in Singapore offering the cheapest personal loan or an instant money lender that can disburse a swift cash loan to you today, we have compiled everything you need to know about taking out a private loan from trusted money lenders in Singapore.
Differences between banks and authorised legal money lenders in Singapore
Benefits & disadvantages of borrowing from licensed money lenders in Singapore
Do registered instant money lenders offer urgent loans with no credit check in Singapore?
What are the personal loan interest rates trusted online money lenders in Singapore can charge?
Differences between banks and authorised legal money lenders in Singapore
Benefits & disadvantages of borrowing from licensed money lenders in Singapore
Do registered instant money lenders offer urgent loans with no credit check in Singapore?
How to calculate interest on a licensed money lender loan?
How much is the maximum personal loan I can get from licensed money lenders?
What happens if you’re unable to pay your trusted money lender in Singapore?
How to resolve disputes with licensed money lenders in Singapore?
What are the personal loan interest rates trusted online money lenders in Singapore can charge?
How to calculate interest on a licensed money lender loan?
How much is the maximum personal loan I can get from licensed money lenders?
What happens if you’re unable to pay your trusted money lender in Singapore?
How to resolve disputes with licensed money lenders in Singapore?
Do all licensed money lenders in Singapore provide monthly loans?
Do all licensed money lenders in Singapore provide monthly loans?
Are there debt consolidation plan money lenders in Singapore?
Are there debt consolidation plan money lenders in Singapore?
Are there debt consolidation plan money lenders in Singapore?
Approaching a bank may be the first option that comes to mind when you need a loan. However, dealing with banking institutions requires lots of paperwork and lengthy processing time. If you make less than S$20,000 per annum, your chances of getting a loan from any bank in Singapore will be rather remote.
But what’s the difference between borrowing from banks and legal private money lenders in Singapore? Here’s a quick comparison including registered money lenders’ personal loan interest rates and banks’ interest rates in Singapore.
Bank
Licensed money Lender
Borrowing limit
From S$1,000 to ten times monthly income
Singaporean and Permanent Residents (PRs) – S$3,000 to six times monthly income
Foreigners – S$500 to six times monthly income
Repayment period
12 to 84 months, though most offer tenures up to 60 months
Up to 12 months, though a few lenders might extend the tenure up to 24 months
Interest rates
From 3.38% per annum
Up to 4% per month
Fees
Around 1%
5% to 10%
Loan eligibility
Documents required
Borrowing limit
From S$1,000 to ten times monthly income
Singaporean and Permanent Residents (PRs) – S$3,000 to six times monthly income
Foreigners – S$500 to six times monthly income
Repayment period
12 to 84 months, though most offer tenures up to 60 months
Up to 12 months, though a few lenders might extend the tenure up to 24 months
Interest rates
From 3.38% per annum
Up to 4% per month
Fees
Around 1%
5% to 10%
Loan eligibility
Documents required
Bank
Licensed money Lender
Bank
Licensed money Lender
Borrowing limit
From S$1,000 to ten times monthly income
Singaporean and Permanent Residents (PRs) – S$3,000 to six times monthly income
Foreigners – S$500 to six times monthly income
Repayment period
12 to 84 months, though most offer tenures up to 60 months
Up to 12 months, though a few lenders might extend the tenure up to 24 months
Interest rates
From 3.38% per annum
Up to 4% per month
Fees
Around 1%
5% to 10%
Loan eligibility
Documents required
Borrowing limit
From S$1,000 to ten times monthly income
Singaporean and Permanent Residents (PRs) – S$3,000 to six times monthly income
Foreigners – S$500 to six times monthly income
Repayment period
12 to 84 months, though most offer tenures up to 60 months
Up to 12 months, though a few lenders might extend the tenure up to 24 months
Interest rates
From 3.38% per annum
Up to 4% per month
Fees
Around 1%
5% to 10%
Loan eligibility
Documents required
111 Credit is a legalised money lender in Singapore that offers competitive rates and fast loan disbursement.
Are you a business owner who’s been wondering “What is the interest rate on a business loan?”. It is good to note that legitimate money lenders like 111 Credit offer a reducing interest rate starting from 4.28% per month. While bank rates are lower in comparison, not everyone is eligible for bank loans.
Just to put things into perspective, OCBC and UOB’s business loan interest rates hover around the 8.75% to 10.88% per annum mark. Yes, they’re much lower, but not everyone is able to obtain these loans.
of borrowing from licensed money lenders in Singapore
While it is true that legalised private money lenders in Singapore offer personal loans and fully private loans for bad credit, they will still conduct relevant credit checks to assess if they are confident of recovering the loan sum from the borrower.
By law, a face-to-face meeting has to be conducted to verify borrowers’ identities before the loan can be disbursed. This is a standard procedure that all legalised private money lenders in Singapore must adhere to.
Discuss your loan needs with 111 Credit today.
Licensed online money lenders in Singapore can only charge a maximum interest rate of 4% per month — most usually offer an interest rate of 1-4% per month.
Keep in mind that while late interest is also capped at 4% per month for each month the loan is paid late, it can only be charged on the amount that’s overdue. The registered money lender is not allowed to levy late interest on amounts that are outstanding but not yet due to be repaid.
Example
If a borrower takes a loan of $5,000, and fails to pay the first instalment of $1,000, the money lender can charge the late interest on $1,000 but not on the remaining $4,000 as it is not due yet.
Legal money lender interest rates are calculated using the reducing balance method. This method derives interest payments based on the outstanding principal balance.
The upside of this method is that you tend to pay much less in interest because the principal amount is reduced after every repayment. Let’s assume you took a personal loan for S$3,000 that should be repaid over a 6-month tenure using an effective interest rate of 7% per annum.
If the lender uses a flat rate method, your total interest payable will be strictly S$210. If the reducing balance method is applied, the total interest payable will be lesser:
Month
Instalment amount
Principal payment
Outstanding principal
Interest payable
1
S$510.26
S$492.42
S$2,507.58
S$17.84
2
S$510.26
S$496.79
S$2,010.79
S$13.47
3
S$510.26
S$498.30
S$1,512.48
S$11.95
4
S$510.26
S$501.56
S$1,010.93
S$8.70
5
S$510.26
S$504.25
S$506.68
S$6.01
6
S$509.59
S$506.68
S$0
S$2.92
Total
S$3,000.00
S$60.88
| Month |
|---|
| 1 |
| 2 |
| 3 |
| 4 |
| 5 |
| 6 |
| Total |
| Instalment amount | Principal payment | Outstanding principal | Interest payable |
|---|---|---|---|
| S$510.26 | S$492.42 | S$2,507.58 | S$17.84 |
| S$510.26 | S$496.79 | S$2,010.79 | S$13.47 |
| S$510.26 | S$498.30 | S$1,512.48 | S$11.95 |
| S$510.26 | S$501.56 | S$1,010.93 | S$8.70 |
| S$510.26 | S$504.25 | S$506.68 | S$6.01 |
| S$509.59 | S$506.68 | S$0 | S$2.92 |
| S$3,000 | S$60.88 |
When attempting to tabulate your loan interest, utilising a calculator can be very useful when it comes to determining your monthly loan repayment amount.
How much money you can borrow from a legalised money lender in Singapore is regulated by MinLaw. The maximum amount is 6 times your monthly income at any one point, across all licensed money lenders in Singapore.
Borrower’s Annual Income
Singapore Citizens and Permanent Residents
Foreigners
Less than S$10,000
S$3,000
S$500
At least S$10,000 and less than S$20,000
S$3,000
S$3,000
S$20,000 and above
Six times of monthly income
Six times of monthly income
Source: Registry of Moneylenders
Bear in mind that late interest and fees are capped at 4% and S$60 per month respectively, while processing fees are limited to up to 10% of the loan sum. The fee structure is regulated by MinLaw. Authorised money lenders in Singapore who exceed these fee limits may face charges for engaging in unfair practices.
If you cannot afford to make a repayment, you should first attempt to negotiate a new repayment plan with your trusted money lender in Singapore. Asking for a payment extension is important because failing to fulfil your loan repayment can lead to several unfavourable outcomes:
Compound interest and late interest, which is capped at 4% per month, will start accruing on your balances owed.
Late payment fees, which are capped at S$60 each month, will start accruing for every late repayment.