Bad checks down during lockdown thanks to extension

A Finance Ministry regulation seeking to protect the market from being flooded by bad checks as a result of the lockdown seems to be paying off.

According to data from the Teiresias credit monitoring system, the extension of checks' payment date has contributed to a reduction of bad checks, though bodies representing commercial traders are calling for more long-term solutions amid fears that obligations are piling up and may be unmanageable when the lockdown ends.

The Teiresias database has shown that some 7,000 bad checks worth around 92 million euros had been reported by end November. With the exception of September when no special measures were in place, the monthly reduction of bad checks since the first lockdown in March ranged between 20-50%.

The first 75-day extension, was granted for March 30 to May 31 and the second from November 18 to...