La Rioja Governor signs decree to combat usury and abusive credit

The Governor of La Rioja, Ricardo Quintela, has signed a Necessity and Urgency Decree (DNU) to establish the Integral Protection Regime for Consumer Credit Users. The measure aims to combat usury and abusive lending practices that have reached critical levels in the province.

Officials noted that many families are no longer using credit for development or capital goods, but are instead incurring debt to cover essential needs such as food and healthcare. The decree introduces a provincial registry to identify and regulate consumer credit operations, aiming to reduce financial informality and predatory interest rates.

Additionally, the province has declared a 180-day economic, credit, and social emergency. This includes a suspension of chattel mortgage executions for 180 days to allow for negotiations between creditors and debtors. Provincial legislator Raúl Cabral supported the measure, emphasizing that the state must intervene to prevent the total absorption of family incomes by excessive debt.