The Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) today launched an integrated rural banking and microfinance service in Fiji, allowing customers with small scale businesses to apply for loans of up to $1000.

“Reincorporating microfinance loans into our existing rural banking service reflects the importance we place on allowing our customers to grow their businesses and income which leads to great prosperity for Fijian communities,” said ANZ Fiji CEO Norman Wilson.

The ANZ micro-credit loan scheme of between $100 and $1000 has a loan term of up to 12 months at an annual interest of 15 percent. It is available for individual customers 21 years and above who earn less than $7,500 per year or married couples whose combined income does not exceed $7,500 annually.

“Through the reintroduction of microfinance loans, we are complying with the Reserve Bank of Fiji’s new policy on financial inclusion. We’ve incorporated strict guidelines and conditions for these loans to ensure we’re lending the right amount of money to the right people for initiatives that will drive economic prosperity,” said Wilson.

ANZ’s rural banking service started in Fiji in 2004 and now provides regular face-to-face banking services to 300 villages, settlements and communities and more than 170 schools across Fiji.

Services offered through ANZ’s rural banking service include opening savings accounts, deposit and withdrawal transactions, financial literacy sessions and now the provision of microfinance loans.