Collection claims from the Bank of Hawaii, the Bank of Guam, the Bank of Saipan and Bank Pacific are mounting.
Yesterday, these banks separately filed close to a dozen collection cases.
The Bank of Hawaii is seeking default judgment against a borrower who owes more than $31,000 and a businessman who did not pay his car loan.
The Bank of Guam is going after several borrowers who have yet to pay their loans for years now.
The Bank of Saipan, which lent more than $6,000 to a local businessman, is asking the court to help recover the money.
The borrower’s last recorded payment was $50 in 1999.
Bank Pacific is seeking court action to recover money from different borrowers.
Government statistics showed that banking activities on the islands have steadily declined because of the slump in the tourism and garment industries.
Only five garment factories remain in operation on Saipan and one more is scheduled to shut down this month.
Tourist arrivals are also steadily declining due to the reduction in the number of air seats from Japan, the main tourism market of the CNMI.
Data from the Commerce Department showed that the total deposits in different banks operating in the CNMI reached $478.05 million in the second quarter of 2008.
Compared to the same period last year, the figure is down by over $33 million.
