Thailand’s Cabinet has earmarked 2 billion baht to help restaurants affected by regulations which prevent patrons from dining on the premises.
According to Finance Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith, the new remedy, called “Im Jai Loan”, will be limited to a maximum of 100,000 baht per applicant and will apply to established food and beverage businesses, such as restaurants, eateries and stalls in department store food courts.
The loan will be granted by the Government Savings Bank at an annual interest rate of 3.99% for up to five years, with borrowers being given a payment respite for the first six months. The measure applies to businesses in Greater Bangkok and border provinces in the South.
It is expected that up to 40,000 businesses will seek to borrow an average of about 50,000 baht each. The government already has a similar measure for roadside food vendors, who can borrow up to 10,000 baht from the Government Savings Bank at a monthly interest of 0.35%.
