The Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) saw a surge in non-performing loans (NPLs) to almost 7% in its last accounting year as a result of the pandemic and natural disasters, says bank president Tanaratt Ngamvalairatt.
He said for the accounting year 2021/2022 -- ending on March 31 this year -- the bank's NPLs stood at 92 billion baht, accounting for 6.63% of total outstanding loans, compared with 3.7% the previous year.
Mr Tanaratt attributed the surge in NPLs to the pandemic, which hit farmers' income last year, coupled with floods in the middle of last year.
