TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Financial Supervisory Commission said on Tuesday that Taiwan’s banks loaned NT$10.338 trillion (US$318.4 billion) to local small- and medium-sized enterprises last year.
The commission’s Banking Bureau Deputy Director-General Hou Li-yang (侯立洋) said as the economy rebounded last year, demand for funding from small- and medium-sized enterprises rose. The figure increased by NT$571.6 billion compared with 2023, reaching the fourth-highest level on record, per CNA.
Loans increased by NT$71.2 billion in December compared with November, reaching a three-month high. Hou attributed the rise to the AI sector, noting that many Taiwanese SMEs are part of the AI supply chain.
The five banks with the most significant loan increases last year were:
- Bank SinoPac, up NT$75.218 billion
- Mega International Commercial Bank, up NT$58.827 billion
- CTBC Bank, up NT$48.134 billion
- Taipei Fubon Bank, up NT$47.431 billion
- E.SUN Bank, up NT$45.802 billion
The commission is in discussions with the Bankers Association and the Ministry of Economic Affairs about this year's loan quotas for SMEs, Hou said. The results are expected to be announced in the second quarter.
The commission added the top three years for the largest increases in loans to SMEs by domestic banks were 2020, with NT$914.5 billion; 2021, with NT$876.3 billion; and 2022, with NT$594.6 billion.
Last year, Taiwanese banks provided NT$15.16 trillion in loans for residential and commercial construction.
