Difference between taking a loan with licensed moneylender and banks?

Licensed Money Lenders In Singapore Are Governed By The Money Lenders Act

Licensed money lenders are registered with the registry of moneylenders where they are required to be compliant with the Moneylenders Act.  You should also be able to find a licensed money lender listed on the Singapore Ministry of Law website. As a rule of thumb to avoid loan shark, always check on the website for list of licensed moneylenders in Singapore before engaging any money lenders. 

Loan scam advisory

In 2019, between January and November there were about 1700 reported cases of loans scams which have possible links to unlicensed moneylending. Victims of such scams were cheated of at least $6.8 million.

​

The reported sum of money cheated in 2019 is three times the reported amount cheated from victims in 2018 where in 990 cases; about $2 million were cheated of victims.