The risk of the loan is spread out over lots of investors lending small amounts.
Under PetroCaribe, members received generous terms for oil purchases, with payments as low as 5% of market value, and the remainder paid off through generous loan terms spread over 25 years.
State-owned banks still dominate the financial sector and are kept profitable by a positive spread between loan and deposit rates dictated by government policy.
As student-loan debt woes have spread, nonprofit colleges are signing on.
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The good news is that the interest goes back into your account and the payments for a loan used to buy a home can often be spread over a longer time period than a regular loan.
High savings (sometimes mandatory), interest rate controls, and high economic growth let Chinese banks enjoy a steady interest rate spread and a larger loan volume.
But even taking these cheaper loans into account, the banks' average spread on a personal loan earlier this year was 44%, about three times that on a corporate loan.
According to Mr Timmons, this is also less than half the spread demanded for such a loan two years ago.
In a perfect credit market, the spread between these two rates, the deposit and the loan rate, would be wafer thin.
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And, in a sign of the times, Husky International waded into the market on July 30 to reprice its covenant-lite loan (the plastics company originally tested the market for a lower spread in May before shelving the transaction amid deteriorating market conditions).
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Student Loan Marketing just dropped a fast 30 points as the Treasury-Euro spread widened.
If a broker puts you into a sub prime loan and you're A credit, they receive what is called the yield spread premium, which also synonymous to a kick back.
He's so focussed on his mission to spread his banking revolution, the most I could commit him to was a loan of his time to offer advice to whoever got the imaginary top job.
"Strengthening the student loan facility will ensure that families who find it hard to meet the costs will have extra help and can spread repayments over a number of years, " said Deputy Reed.
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