SCJ final decision in favor of “Microinvest”

07052015

Justice triumphed in the case of “Microinvest”, one of the biggest microfinance company in Moldova. On April 29, the Supreme Court of Justice gave prevail to “Microinvest” into the forced execution of investment contracts concluded between the company and its shareholders.

The extended Board on civil, commercial and administrative cases of the Supreme Court has recognized illegal the decisions of the lower courts, because they were taken with the interpretation and misapplication of the rules of substantive and procedural law. The Supreme Court decision is final and is not appealable.

The Associates of “Microinvest” – “BFSE HOLDING BV” (Netherlands), among whose principal investors are the development agencies of the Governments of Switzerland and Germany, “Oikocredit” Ecumenical Development Cooperative Society UA (Netherlands), Soros Economic Development Fund (USA) and SA SIDI SOLIDARITE INTERNATIONALE POUR LE DEVELOPPEMENT ET L’INVESTISSEMENT (France) – believe that the Supreme Court judged the case correctly, in accordance with the international law in force, in compliance with the arbitration clause.

Clive Moody, the representative of the shareholders of “Microinvest”:
“The decision of the Supreme Court is a signal to us, investors, that Moldovan courts respect the contracts that we sign, the jurisdiction to settle disputes under these contracts and the law we choose to govern their execution. Foreign investors rely on commercial contracts governed by international law, which ensures clarity and predictability – key issues in attracting foreign investments in Moldova. Therefore, our case will serve as an important precedent and will have impact in the attractiveness of Moldova for foreign investors. This decision motivates us to continue investments in Moldova, to develop the company, financing more businesses and creating new jobs. ”

We would like to remind you that in this process, by decision of December 18th 2014, the judges of the Court of Appeal have attributed the jurisdiction to hear an investment dispute, ignoring the arbitration clause and English law, chosen by all parties as the law applicable to contracts in question. By adopting that decision, given the fact that 81.58% of the share capital of the company “Microinvest” consists of foreign investment, has been severely violated international arbitration clause and international conventions signed by Moldova. And Moldova, which is subject to international laws, must respect property rights of foreign investors and to ensure the protection of foreign investments in the country.

About “Microinvest”
“Microinvest” is a microfinance company, which operates in banking and financial market of Moldova since April 2013. The company’s mission is to provide competitive financial solutions to local small businesses and individuals to develop entrepreneurship in Moldova and to contribute to the growth of the socio-economic potential of the country and raise the living standards of citizens. Currently “Microinvest” has a network of 14 branches and 1 agency, covering most districts of the Republic of Moldova, where 117 employees work.

During its activity “Microinvest” has financed 32,729 businesses and individuals, providing loans worth 1.58 billion lei and helped create over 3,000 jobs. On December 31st 2014 “Microinvest” had 8,100 active loans and a portfolio of 235,7 million lei.

More information about the company “Microinvest” can be found on the website: www.microinvest.md.

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Client's Name
Client's Surname
Personal Identity Number
Currency
Term
Rate
Amount
Monthly payment
Amount to receive
Purpose
Comments

1. Name and Contact Information of the Creditor
Creditor
Address
Phone number
Email Address
Web page

3. Costs of the credit
Rates related to the credit
Annual Percentage Rate of Charge (APR) This is the total cost expressed as an annual percentage of the total amount of credit. The APR is there to help you compare different offers	%
In order to obtain the loan in accordance with the agreed terms and conditions, it is mandatory to conclude an insurance contract to guarantee the loan or a contract for another ancillary service.
Related costs
Any other costs deriving from the credit agreement	Fee for services rendered in relation to usage of credit, calculated and paid as follows: of the credit and paid by the Debtor on the date of granting the credit from own sources or is deducted by the Creditor from the amount of the credit The negotiation / prolongation of the credit can take place by mutual agreement of the parties, by signing an additional agreement, the Creditor being entitled to request an increase in the interest rate within the limits provided by the legislation in force. In case of negotiation / prolongation of the loan, the Borrower shall pay to the Creditor, at the date of the negotiation / prolongation a commission in the amount of 2% from the credit balance at the time of negotiation / prolongation.
Conditions under which the costs related to the credit agreement can be changed	The Sides can change the costs related to the credit by written agreement signed by both parties; For the non-constitution of the guarantees within the agreed term, the Creditor is entitled to calculate, and the Client will pay to the Creditor an Interest of delay in the amount of 5% annually, applied to of the daily balance for each day of delay, starting with the date following the term established for the constitution of the guarantee/ s and until the date of the proper execution of the respective obligation.
Obligation to pay for notarial fees / mortgage registration fees / fees for noting the prohibition of pledge in the Transport Register related to the pledge of means of transport (agricultural machinery)	Paid by the Client , except as otherwise provided in the pledge / mortgage agreement.
The cost for the valuation of real estate proposed in pledge	Paid by the Client directly to the Evaluator
Costs in the case of late payments Missing payments could have severe consequences for you (e.g. forced sale) and make obtaining credit more difficult
The repayment of the loan is free of charge in the secondary offices of the Creditor, as well as at the discretion of the Debtor through the representatives authorized to collect loan payments. The list of which and their fees are published on the website of the Creditor (www.microinvest.md/cum-achiti-creditul/). In case the Debtor use payment methods with fee, the Debtor cover all the costs of repayment of the loan and undertake to make the payments in such a way that the Creditor receives the agreed repayment amount and without any deductions by third parties processing the refund payment.
In accordance with and arising from the provisions of art. 15, para. 7), lit. a) from Law no. 202/2013, any payments related to the granted credit (commissions, taxes, penalties, late interest and any other type of payment), except interest, will be applied and collected within the limit of the ceiling of 0.04% of the total value of the credit per credit day multiplied by the number of days of actual use of the credit (hereinafter 'Ceiling'). Therefore, the Lender will be entitled to apply and collect the costs, excluding interest, exactly in the fixed or percentage amount established in the contract if the said ceiling allows, and if the ceiling is lower than the value of at least one cost, excluding interest, then the Lender will be entitled to reduce the fixed/percentage amount and apply and collect any of the applicable costs only within the limit of the ceiling value. When calculating the ceiling, the costs already applied and collected will be taken into account, with the exception of interest, which reduces its value. (Representative example: if the amount of the penalty is 20 MDL per day, and the ceiling value at that time is 16 MDL, then a maximum of 16 MDL will be collected).

4. Other important legal aspects
Right of withdrawal You have the right to withdraw from the credit agreement within a period of 14 calendar days	Yes
Early repayment You have the right to repay the credit early at any time in full or partially	Yes
The creditor is entitled to compensation in the case of early repayment The Debtor may repay the loan in full or in part in advance, notifying the Creditor in writing 3 days in advance, and paying an early repayment fee of:	% from early repaid amount, if the period of time between the date of early repayment and convened maturity exceeds one year; % from early repaid amount.The early repayment can be made only if the Debtor has no outstanding debts on interest or other amounts to be paid in accordance with the Contract. % from early repaid amount, if the period of time between the date of early repayment and convened maturity does not exceed one year.
Database usage The creditor must inform you immediately and without charge of the result of a consultation of a database, if a credit application is rejected on the basis of such a consultation. This does not apply if the provision of such information is prohibited by law or is contrary to objectives of public policy or public security The parties may agree on additional terms and conditions, which will be included in the credit agreement.	Yes
Right to a draft credit agreement You have the right, upon request, to obtain a copy of the draft credit agreement free of charge. This provision does not apply if the creditor, at the time of the request, is unwilling to proceed to the conclusion of the credit agreement with you	Yes
The period of time during which the creditor is bound by the pre-contractual obligations	This offer is valid for 15 calendar days after it is issued.
In this regard, I subsequently declare that: I was provided with the necessary information, the essential characteristics of the above-mentioned credit product were explained (interest rate, number of commissions, credit costs, early repayment conditions, total amount to be paid), as well as the consequences of non-compliance with contractual clauses; the costs included in the total cost of the loan were explained to me, including the costs for ancillary services related to the credit agreement; I was offered the possibility to negotiate individually the contractual clauses in the credit agreement that I intend to sign, I negotiated individually the granting commission, the monthly commission, the amount of penalties and I mention that its clauses do not disadvantage me, being fair in the report mine with the creditor; I was asked by the creditor about the probable importance of the information provided and whether essential circumstances that I expected to be provided were not omitted in order to make an informed and rational decision about concluding the potential credit agreement. the information provided and the corresponding explanations allowed me to assess, including the personal analysis of other offers of third party creditors, whether the proposed credit agreement is tailored to my needs and financial situation; I know the content of the contract and all its conditions have been explained to me, I have understood and accepted them, and the documents and information underlying the conclusion of the contract are complete and accurate; I know the law, the normative acts that will govern the contract, as well as the lack of consumer quality; I have no ambiguities or misunderstandings regarding the terms of the contract; the credit product corresponds to the purpose described above and will be used according to the destination and the economic activity carried out. The assets procured/resulted/constructed/repaired from received loan sources will be registered/transmitted in the social capital of the company where my business activity is carried out and/or will be used jointly by the members or individually however strictly for running my business activity. (Signature)