The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has ordered six lending and financing companies to stop operating, after they were found to be engaging in unfair debt collection practices.
The SEC Financing and Lending Companies Division, in separate orders issued last week, directed Surity Cash Lending Corp., Populus Lending Corporation, U-Peso.PH Lending Corporation, FESL Lending Corp., Philippine Microdot Financing Corp., and Armorak Lending, Inc. “to immediately cease and desist from engaging in, or carrying out any unfair debt collection practices”, in line with any lending activity or transaction.
The orders cover the companies’ branches, extensions, satellite offices, units, and online lending platforms (OLPs), as well as the owners, operators, promoters, representatives, and agents, the SEC said in a statement June 30.
The OLPs of the lending and financing companies include the Surity Cash for Surity Cash Lending; PesoPop, PesoCow, NewCash, and LuckyLoan for Populus Lending; UPeso, Pera4U, PeraLending, and LoanMoto for U-Peso.PH Lending Corporation; Start Loan, Pondo Loan, and First Cash for FESL Lending Corp.; Pautang Peso, Borrow Peso, King Loan, Loan Peso, Lendpeso Market, Loan Quick, CashCloud, Cash Star, FreeePeso, Going Loans, Peso Network, and Red Cash for Philippine Microdot Financing Corp.; and Ayudas and WeLoan for Armorak Lending, Inc.
These companies were found to have employed abusive collection or debt recovery practices against their customers, the SEC stressed, adding that Section 1 of Memorandum Circular 18-2019, and Republic Act No. 11765, or the Financial Products and Services Consumer Protection Act, “prohibit financial service providers from making use of threats to take any action against their clients, as well as contacting persons in the borrower’s contact list other than those who were named as guarantors or co-makers, among others.”
The CDOs were issued following the filing of a criminal complaint against several lending and financing companies before the Department of Justice recently.
The case stemmed from a joint operation between the SEC Task Force on Online Lending Application and the Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime Group after receipt of several complaints against several SEC-registered OLPs, particularly Loanmoto, Lendpeso, and Weloan, the Commission added. ||
