Is PostFinance allowed to offer personal loans?
As a state-owned postal bank, PostFinance is not allowed to offer its own loans which compete with those of commercial lenders. However, the Swiss postal bank is allowed to sell products from third-party commercial lenders. For example, PostFinance has already offered mortgages from partner banks like Valiant for some time now.
Which lender is PostFinance partnering with for its personal loans?
PostFinance is now offering personal loans via its website. However, PostFinance only acts as an agent. Commercial Swiss lender bob Finance – a Valora company – is the lender behind the PostFinance loan offers. bob Finance, in turn, works with the Glarner Kantonalbank.
Bob Finance from Valora also offers personal loans directly to the public. Apparently, Valora does not expect that the PostFinance collaboration will cannibalize its direct sales. bob Finance told moneyland.ch that the cooperation with PostFinance will enable it to reach a new group of potential customers.
What are the requirements for loan applicants?
In order to be considered for a personal loan from PostFinance, applicants must meet the following criteria:
- You must be between 18 to 64 years old.
- You must be a Swiss citizen or have a B or C residence permit.
- You have to have lived in Switzerland for a minimum of 12 months at the time of applying.
- You must be permanently employed.
- You cannot be completing a probationary period with your employer at the time of applying.
- You do not have open debt collection register entries.
You do not need to have an account with PostFinance in order to apply for PostFinance loans.
How much do PostFinance loans cost?
The published interest rates for personal loans are effective interest rates. PostFinance interest rates vary between 3.95% and 6.9% per annum depending on your creditworthiness.
You can use the moneyland.ch loan calculator to quickly find out how much you would actually pay based on those rates.
For example, if you get a 50,000-franc loan with a 6.9% effective annual interest rate and a 48-month loan term, your monthly loan payment would be 1190.15 francs per month. The total cost of the loan over the full loan term would be 7127 francs.
Who is eligible for the lowest interest rate?
The lowest possible interest rate of 3.95% per annum is very attractive, but in practice very few borrowers are likely to get this rate. The reason for this is that only applicants who meet the strictest criteria are eligible for the best rate.
To be eligible for the lowest rate, borrowers must have exceptional creditworthiness. bob Finance can decide whether an applicant is creditworthy enough at its discretion. In practice, only a small percentage of borrowers have sufficient creditworthiness.
Borrowers must also prove a minimum net income of 4500 francs per month to be considered for the lowest interest rate.
Where can I apply for PostFinance loans?
PostFinance only offers its personal loans online. You must fill out and submit the application form online. You cannot apply for PostFinance loans at PostFinance branch offices or post offices.
What loan sizes are available?
PostFinance offers loans of between 1000 and 80,000 francs and loan terms of between 6 and 84 months.
How is a PostFinance loan different from a bob Finance loan?
The main differences between PostFinance loans funded by bob Finance and direct personal loans from bob Finance apply to the maximum loan terms and the minimum and maximum interest rates.
The maximum loan term for direct personal loans from bob Finance is 120 months, while PostFinance loans have a maximum term of 84 months.
Interest rates for direct loans from bob Finance range between 4.9% and 9.9% per annum. The interest rates of PostFinance loans range between 3.95% and 6.9% per annum.
What is not clear is whether the same individuals with the same creditworthiness would get the same or different interest rates depending on whether they get a loan directly from bob Finance or indirectly through PostFinance. Valora told moneyland.ch that personal loans from PostFinance are independent of bob Finance and have been designed in cooperation with its partner PostFinance.
How do PostFinance loans compare to other Swiss personal loan offers?
The lowest possible interest rate of 3.95% is among the lowest interest rates offered by any Swiss lender. However, depending on the lender and the borrower’s creditworthiness, there are individual offers with even lower interest rates.
But in the end, the actual interest rate you can get based on your creditworthiness is the deciding factor. For example, you may only be eligible for a 6.9% annual interest rate at PostFinance, but get a lower-interest offer from another lender.
More on this topic:
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