At the Cabinet's weekly meeting Thursday, Premier Su Tseng-chang touted results from the Financial Supervisory Commission's (FSC) program to encourage the financial sector to step up support for the nation's industries.
In 2018, for instance, loans provided by domestic banks to companies in the "five plus two" innovative industries grew by NT$200 billion (US$6.6 billion) over the amount in 2017. And as of April 2019, total credit extended by domestic banks to Taiwanese firms seeking to do business in countries targeted by the New Southbound Policy exceeded the NT$1 trillion (US$32.4 billion) mark.
The premier instructed the FSC to continue working with state-owned banks to provide a financial services environment conducive to industrial growth, which will ensure wins all around for financial institutions and for other industries.
The government employs a raft of measures—including business financing, fundraising assistance, direct investment and venture capital funding—to support the real economy while developing the financial sector, Premier Su said. The balance of loans to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) has also climbed steadily each year, as has the share of SME loans to all business loans.
To encourage banks to provide more loans to SMEs, this year the government added "growth in the number of loan accounts" as a performance indicator, and introduced a special award recognizing outstanding financing services to small and new businesses. These measures will encourage financial institutions to help more SMEs and startup companies access the funds needed to operate their businesses, he said.