# Apply for a Short-Term Loan Singapore: Bank Approval Still Pending Insights article · Singapore · Published 2026-11-05 > Your OTP will expire before the bank replies. You can apply for a short-term loan in parallel, keep the bank file alive, and complete against the asset: here is how caveat, charge and early redemption work. The bank has your application. The Option to Purchase will expire first. That is the bind, not a missing payslip. You can apply for a short-term loan without withdrawing the bank file. We underwrite the asset and a defined exit. The bank can still issue its letter of offer later. Sequence is the real work: who lodges the caveat, what your conveyancer is told, and what early redemption costs if the mortgage lands. > **Why this matters:** A live bank application does not stop the OTP clock, so a parallel short-term loan is often how you still complete on time. ## Highlights - You can apply for a short-term loan while a bank mortgage file is still open. - We underwrite the asset and the exit, not the bank's TDSR timetable. - Indicative term sheet usually within 24 hours; drawdown typically about two weeks; $1M to $100M, up to 70% LTV, tenor 3–24 months. - If the bank later approves, you redeem the private facility rather than run two loans. - Accredited investors and corporates only; terms are indicative and subject to valuation. - [Talk to a specialist](https://www.rikvincapital.com/sg/contact-us) ## Can you apply for a short-term loan beside a live bank file? Yes, unless you have granted the bank exclusivity, which a standard purchase application usually does not require. Waiting for a decline letter is how buyers forfeit deposits. Run both files. Banks still apply [the TDSR framework](https://www.mas.gov.sg/regulation/explainers/tdsr-for-property-loans) to declared income, even when the asset is straightforward. We are not a bank, and we are not bound by the TDSR rules that apply to banks. We lend against the asset and the exit, and an indicative term sheet can usually be issued within 24 hours, with drawdown typically about two weeks. Keep the bank application alive. If it lands, it is a clean refinance. The product we mean by short-term loan is a [Singapore bridging loan](https://www.rikvincapital.com/sg/bridging-loans): first charge, 3–24 months, accredited investors and corporates. ## Caveats, conveyancers and first charge After you exercise the OTP, your solicitor lodges a purchaser's caveat. That protects your contractual interest. It is not lender security. A private facility will take a first charge on the new property at completion. Tell the conveyancer now that the completing funds may be private, not the bank. Last-minute dual instructions are how dates slip. [How the lending process works](https://www.rikvincapital.com/sg/process) is term sheet, valuation, KYC, then drawdown. Do not freeze the title work because a letter of offer might arrive next week. Might is not funds. ![Singapore shophouse facade on a conserved city street](https://media.rikvincapital.com/rikvin-media/unsplash-1790906698506-5139.jpg) *A first charge on the asset can be prepared while the bank file is still open.* ## What happens when the bank approves You redeem. The incoming mortgage discharges the private first charge. Interest runs for the period drawn, serviced or rolled up as the facility provides. Those terms stay indicative until documents are out. You should not hold both loans. Our minimum tenor is three months, so an early redemption may carry minimum interest set out in the facility letter. Ask for that figure before you sign, and price the bridge against the deposit you would otherwise put at risk. Related: [a prime residential bridging loan case study](https://www.rikvincapital.com/sg/case-study/prime-residential-bridging-loan-for-holland-road-property). If you want the internal timetable rather than the parallel-track question, [what happens between enquiry and term sheet](https://www.rikvincapital.com/sg/insights/24-hour-bridging-loan-singapore-term-sheet) sets it out. ## When a short-term facility is the wrong tool Use it when the completion date is fixed, the security will support a first charge, and the exit is a bank refinance, a sale, or other funds you can evidence. Do not use it if you need unsecured consumer credit, or if the only plan is hope that the bank says yes. The main risk is completing on the private facility and then seeing the bank decline. You would need to refinance or sell inside a 3–24 month tenor. Rikvin Capital is a direct private lender and an excluded moneylender under the Moneylenders Act, lending only to accredited investors and corporates. For how the two credit styles differ, read [bank versus private bridging loans in Singapore](https://www.rikvincapital.com/sg/insights/bank-vs-private-bridging-loan-singapore). ## Frequently asked questions ### Can I apply for a short-term loan if the bank has not decided yet? Yes. A private application does not require you to withdraw the bank file. We underwrite the asset and the exit, so a pending mortgage does not block a term sheet. Keep the bank working: if it approves after drawdown, you redeem. Terms are indicative and subject to valuation and due diligence. ### What happens if the bank approves after I have drawn? You refinance. The bank mortgage pays out the private facility and takes first charge. You pay interest for the period the facility was outstanding, plus any minimum interest set in the documents, since the minimum tenor is three months. You do not run both loans as a structure. Exact costs are deal-specific and appear in the facility letter. ### Will the private lender's caveat clash with my purchase caveat? No. Your solicitor's purchaser caveat protects your interest under the OTP. A lender caveat or mortgage protects the facility at completion. They are not the same instrument. Instruct the conveyancer early that a private lender may be the completing party, so the charge documents match the funds that actually arrive. ### How fast can you complete if my OTP is in three weeks? A term sheet can usually be issued within 24 hours. Drawdown is typically about two weeks, and some urgent files have completed inside seven days, subject to valuation, KYC and due diligence. Three weeks is tight but possible if the papers are in order. We do not guarantee a completion date. ### Is this an unsecured personal loan? No. Rikvin Capital is a direct private lender to accredited investors and corporates. Facilities are secured against property, listed securities or certain luxury vehicles, with a defined exit. An unsecured personal loan is a different product and not one we offer. ## The bottom line The expensive mistake is arriving at completion with a pending bank file and no money. Get the minimum interest position in writing, tell the conveyancer which lender may fund, and keep both files moving until one of them completes. --- Markdown version of https://www.rikvincapital.com/sg/insights/apply-short-term-loan-singapore-bank-pending — provided by Rikvin Capital for AI agents. Site index: https://www.rikvincapital.com/llms.txt