[Updated on 26 Feb] Which one should I apply for - SFGS 100, SFGS 90 or SFGS 80? | Article – HSBC VisionGo
The Government introduced three guarantee products under the SME Financing Guarantee Scheme (SFGS). Which one should a company choose?
The Government introduced the SME Financing Guarantee Scheme (SFGS) to guarantee loans to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Hong Kong secure financing with lower interest rates. There are three loan products provided under SFGS, namely:
The 80% Guarantee Product (SFGS 80) – launched in 2011
The 90% Guarantee Product (SFGS 90) – launched in 2019
The Special 100% Loan Guarantee (SFGS 100) – announced in early 2020
What are the differences between these products? Which one should a company choose?
Loan amount
Each of the products has a different maximum loan amount, of which SFGS 80 provides the largest amount:
Targeted segment
Three products can be applied by businesses across almost all industry (except Money Lender). However from the loan amount and application requirements, we can see that each product serves a different SME segment.
Eligibility
All products require applicants to be businesses* registered and operating in Hong Kong. As the targeted segments are different, certain eligibility criteria of each product vary.
Overall Interest Rate
Generally speaking, the interest rate of Guarantee Products under SME Financing Guarantee Scheme (SFGS) will be lower than other loan products offered in the market. Businesses need to pay the guarantee fee to the HKMC Insurance Limited (HKMCI), who will guarantee the loan for the businesses, so that banks can offer lower interest rates to them. Among the three Guarantee Products, SFGS 100 offers the lowest rate. 
In addition, according to SFGS latest update on 29 May 2020, the Government will provide interest subsidy for the 80% and 90% guaranteed loans, with the amount of subsidy subject to a cap of 3%.
Guarantee fee
All three loan products are guaranteed by HKMCI, however the guarantee fee of SFGS 100 is waived.
Reminder: "To borrow or not to borrow? Borrow only if you can repay!"
HSBC reserves the final decision on application approval. Please refer the terms and conditions of the application form.
