Quick and easy loans trap maids in cycle of debt

Many borrow from multiple lenders and when some employers find out, they are sent home

At Lucky Plaza, where there are at least six licensed moneylending firms doing brisk business, a moneylender said if maids do not have access to licensed lenders, they will end up borrowing from loan sharks.
At Lucky Plaza, where there are at least six licensed moneylending firms doing brisk business, a moneylender said if maids do not have access to licensed lenders, they will end up borrowing from loan sharks. ST PHOTO: DESMOND FOO
Joyce Lim
Senior Correspondent
Updated
Oct 15, 2018, 07:09 AM
Published
Oct 14, 2018, 05:00 AM
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Lucky Plaza in Orchard Road - a popular haunt of maids on Sundays - is an unlikely place to be busy on a weekday morning.

But a visit by The Sunday Times on Thursday morning found it to be a hive of activity.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Sunday Times on October 14, 2018, with the headline Quick and easy loans trap maids in cycle of debt. Subscribe

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