LB Intervenes With a Loan Shark
by Oksana Pankyeyeva
Recently we had a meeting at a trade school for disabled students. The topic we discussed was “Suicide.” As we talked with kids at the end, we found out two of them had the desire to end their lives. This story is about cheerful Katya Kutova, in the photo.
After the meeting Katya asked the leaders to stay and talk about her problem. Katya had taken out a loan at 3% interest PER DAY! It was through a website called Moneyveo.
Katya on the right, in our new van, after a trip to a café
The loan was for only 2500 hryvnyas (about $100). But she didn’t pay it back on time. Because of this delay, the bank started taking payments only on the interest. She paid 3500 hryvnyas toward her debt, but that was only the beginning of her troubles.
Now take a seat so you don’t fall down. She got another letter from the collectors, and her debt had increased to 8150 hryvnyas. This new amount came from some complicated mathematics in which she pays percent on percent—100% in a month!
This resulted in Katya’s intention to commit suicide. She wanted either to kill herself or to injure herself, because she has insurance.
At the end of her meeting with the Last Bell staff that day, we invited her to the Support Center. There, Senya, Katya and I tried to solve her case.
After we talked to the creditors, they restructured the loan, decreasing the total to 5960 hryvnyas to be paid over the next 300 days. So we and Katya got back our peace of mind.
The additional interest was stopped, though Katya still needs to pay her loan back according to the contract.
Editor’s note: Part of the ugly system set against orphanage graduates in Ukraine is their vulnerability to predatory loans like Katya’s. We are so grateful God provided this opportunity to intervene. It might have saved her life!