UniCredit Bank fined CZK 10 mil. over fees for early mortgage repayment

by   CIJ News iDesk III
2023-01-05   09:18
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UniCredit Bank was fined CZK 10 million by the Czech National Bank (CNB) over fees charged for early repayment of mortgages in breach of the consumer loan law which concerned 1,497 clients.

The sanction represents the highest fine to date imposed for fees charged for early repayment, the website added.

UniCredit Bank Czech Republic and Slovakia failed to reduce the total cost of these loans by interest costs worth nearly CZK 42.37 million, according to the CNB's decision.

The CNB launched an audit in the bank based on client suggestions, deciding in mid-July last year that the bank was guilty of the offence.

The decision concerns clients who applied for early repayment of housing loans between March 8, 2019 and December 4, 2020.

The CNB's decision requires the bank to pay CZK 10 million within 30 days of the decision becoming final, which occurred in mid-December last year, according to the website. When asked by the website if UniCredit Bank had paid the fine, its spokesman Petr Plocek said the bank has always respected the regulator's decisions.

Last summer, the CNB fined Komercni banka CZK 7.5 million for a similar offence, and the building society Modra pyramida, which belongs to the Komercni banka group, was fined CZK 5 million for similar misconduct early last year.

Source: Penize.cz and CTK