Low Participation On Housewives' Social Security Scheme

Only 35 per cent or a total of 176,883 housewives are being protected under the Housewives’ Social Security Scheme (SKSSR) as of yesterday compared to the target of 500,000.

Government strongly encouraged all housewives under the age of 55 to get covered and husbands to contribute to the scheme on behalf of their wives for their protection and welfare. The SKSSR enforced on December 1 last year was introduced under the Housewives’ Social Security Act 2022, aimed at providing social security protection to housewives from domestic disasters and disability while managing households.

As of May 24, RM167,000 in SKSSR benefits had been paid to insured housewives and their families, proving that the scheme could provide protection for the beneficiaries should they be involved in accidents, or experience disabilities or deaths when managing households.

Meanwhile, our government is aiming for one million gig economy workers to contribute to Socso to protect them from various risks while on the job.

Insurer Withdrawing From Risk

Last August (2022) - Canyon Park Villas - a condo complex that sits atop a steep wooded canyon outside of San Diego - lost its fire insurance, as more private providers across the state decline to renew policies in the face of growing wildfire risks.

When the condo association looked for replacement coverage, the cost was nearly 13 times the old rate: $600,000 a year, up from $47,000. To pay the bill, the complex of 240 clustered units levied an immediate special assessment of $2,500 per home to cover the cost, with another expected later this year.

Residents are struggling to pay - The residents of Canyon Park Villas are part of a growing flood of California homeowners being forced into the world of last-resort insurance, where prices can be astronomical.

Their case is extreme, but the problem is increasingly common: As climate-change-fueled disasters worsen, insurance against them is becoming unaffordable, leaving many families, organizations and governments at growing financial risk.

Between 2015 and 2021, over 1.3 million Californians had their fire coverage dropped by an insurer, out of a total of around 10 million total polices in the state.

A 2022 report from Rand Corporation found that in zip codes in California's Sierra Foothills with the highest wildfire risk, insurance rates are expected to jump by 18% for every $1,000 dollars of coverage by 2055 - making those areas potentially unaffordable to live in.

Insurer Refused to Insure - With 13 of California most destructive wildfires having happened in the last five years, according to the National Aeronatics and Space Administration (NASA), worried insurers are issuing increasing "non-renewals" to policyholders.

In response, the California insurance commissioner, starting in 2019, began blocking insurance companies from carrying out the practice in parts of the state impacted by fire and where states of emergency had been declared.

The blocks "prevent the insurance companies from actually overreacting to the fire and wanting to just, on a whim, (not) renew all these folks. But insurers say worsening wildfires have put the California market under strain, and raising premiums must come alongside making bigger payouts if companies are to stay in business.

After a record wildfire year in 2018, California insurers paid more than $13 billion in claims.

Over 80% of people who contact her in search of wildfire insurance policies are now considering leaving California if they cannot find affordable coverage. Other insurance options beyond private policies are available but not very attractive. It typically has high premiums, and only covers structural damage to properties, compared to traditional private policies that usually also cover loss of a home's contents.

Natural Ecosystem - Fire is a natural part of the California ecosystem, but climate change is increasing the length of the fire season, and leading to droughts that dramatically increase the amount of dead vegetation that feeds large destructive fires.

The average area burned in California each year in the 2000s and 2010s was twice the 1990s average - and in 2020 to 2021 it was 10 times higher. That fast-growing wildfire risk is a major problem, especially with protections from losses, including through insurance coverage, weakening.

HonestBee - Not Too Honest

Grocery delivery startup - honestbee - has no funds available to settle outstanding debts to former staff, vendors, and other unsecured creditors, amounting to S$319.9 million. The company’s sole secured creditor, Formation Group, has reportedly recovered approximately S$700,000 from the assets of honestbee, a far cry from the US$4 million worth of debentures held by the venture capital. Numerous former employees of honestbee are also still awaiting unpaid salaries.

The liquidator appointed for honestbee, was only able to recover around S$720 from excess payments related to “electrical supplies.” Following a creditors’ meeting on May 18, the liquidator is planning to seek approval from the High Court to discharge itself from its responsibilities and dissolve honestbee.

Founded in 2015 by three Singaporean entrepreneurs — Joel Sng, Isaac Tay, and Jonathan Low — honestbee quickly gained momentum as an e-grocer. Over the years, it expanded beyond grocery delivery services to offer other services such as food delivery and laundry services. 

The company experienced remarkable success within months of its operation and had successfully established a presence in eight countries across Asia, including Taiwan and Japan.

Poor management - However, honestbee’s fortunes took a downturn in 2019, leading to its eventual downfall. The company faced a financial crisis, due to poor capital management. The company made lavish purchases, including a property in Japan, which was worth about US$1.1 million. The Company went on to create multiple shell companies, which directed honestbee to make payments to these entities in exchange for their products, all while keeping these transactions undisclosed to investors.

Next Of Kin Responsible For Tax Owing

The government does not want to amend the Income Tax Act which stipulates that the administrator or next-of-kin of a deceased income taxpayer has to pay the tax arrears. Deputy Finance Minister claimed that if the act is not implemented against the executors and heirs, it is feared that the motivation and sense of responsibility of the people to pay their taxes will decline.

Unmotivated To Pay Taxes - Finance Ministry believes that if this (compulsion) is not done, there are parties who are irresponsible and unmotivated to pay taxes. They are waiting to die because then all debts do not need to be paid and debts with IRB (Inland Revenue Board) are settled.

The matter is already (included) in the act and the IRB informed that the amount (tax) charged is the amount of (taxable) income until his death. If the heirs can pay the tax they should do so. 

Next Of Kin Responsible For Taxes - Inland Revenue Board said that the next-of-kin of deceased taxpayers are fully responsible for their commitments including income tax management. Section 74 of the Income Tax Act 1967 stipulates that any income tax arrears cannot be automatically written off even if the individual involved is certified dead.

Accident Claim RM3.9 Million Dismissed

Malaysia Selayang Sessions Court has dismissed a RM3.9 million claim for personal injury by a motorcyclist, who is now bedridden after suffering multiple fractures to his vertebrae. N Vikneswaran, 35, failed to prove his claim against insurance company AXA Affin General Insurance Berhad, N Shathiswaran and R Muneeswari.

Shathiswaran was the driver of the car Vikneswaran had collided with, while Muneeswari is the owner of said car. 

The Court ordered Vikneswaran, Shathiswaran and Muneeswari to pay costs to AXA Affin. 
As it is required under the law for appeal purposes, the judge had assessed the damages to be about RM3.9 million should the negligence suit be allowed.

In his statement of claim, Vikneswaran alleged that he collided with the car driven by Shathiswaran at Jalan Batu Caves, Selangor at about 5am on Aug 29, 2016. Muneeswari had taken a vehicle insurance policy from AXA Affin.

The insurance company had ordered its adjusters to investigate the claim as they suspected something amiss.In their statement of defence, AXA Affin had alleged that Shathiswaran had lodged a false report about the involvement of the car in the alleged collision.

Scam SIM Card Investment

Malaysia Police have crippled a bogus telecommunications investment scheme syndicate with the arrest of a local man. A 32-year-old suspect was arrested following a raid here on Wednesday (May 17). Two mobile phones, an ATM card and two cheque books believed to be used in the investment scam was sized.

The suspect is the mastermind of the syndicate which has been operating since 2020. The syndicate offered bogus investment schemes for SIM cards and other telecommunications service-based products. The investment packages were claimed to pay out lifetime returns.

Police investigations revealed that investors only received returns for a short time before the company claimed it was suffering losses and could no longer make payments. Three police reports had been lodged over this scheme so far, involving about RM1.42mil in losses.

Investment Shaman Aka Serial Killer

In Muslim-majority Indonesia - where nearly 10 per cent of the population live below the poverty line, some view shamans as traditional healers. Several Indonesians claimed they were scammed by people claiming to be spiritual figures, promising to turn small investments into immense wealth. Indonesian Police say some alleged scammers turn to violence when their victims come looking for their money. 

Halal Investment - The scams have circulated widely on Indonesian social media. Just two dozen Facebook posts advertising so-called shaman investment schemes were viewed more than 1.4 million times as of this week. One post, viewed 643,000 times from April 8 to May 17, claimed a Muslim sheikh would help people multiply their funds, and that the service did not violate the tenets of Islam.

Police identified Wowon Erawan, a 60-year-old who worked with two partners to trick migrant workers into sending them money. Police accused the trio of murdering nine people including Wowon’s wife and stepchildren to cover up their crimes. Police said the three men had been arrested, and that they had confessed to killing victims with pesticide-laced drinks.

Wowon wan repented and apologised to victims’ families at the police press conference. The trio face the death penalty if found guilty.

Another Shaman - police arrested another accused serial killer shaman, 45-year-old Slamet Tohari, after a man was reported missing by his family. Slamet also stands accused of boasting he could magically multiply money, luring victims into rituals before poisoning them with potassium cyanide when they asked for their money back.

At least 12 bodies have been uncovered on Slamet’s land, according to police, who said in a statement last month the number could be higher after they received further reports of 28 missing people.

Malaysian More Willing To Commit Fraud

Around three in five or 62 per cent Malaysians are willing to commit fraud to obtain a loan or file an insurance claim. 35 per cent of respondents feel it is "OK" to exaggerate income on a loan or mortgage application, while around 25 per cent thought it was normal to do so.

A similar proportions of consumers would exaggerate an insurance claim or add items to a claim.

Fraud Mentality - This sentiment is more pronounced in Malaysia compared to Southeast Asian neighbours Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia, where close to 50 per cent of the respondents said such behaviours are normal.

While many think that people should never take these fraudulent actions, the survey sheds light on the concerning willingness of many Malaysians to commit fraud in pursuit of financial gain.

These numbers underscore the importance for Malaysian banks to bolster fraud prevention to safeguard customers' interests and strengthen their bottom line. The study's results indicated that banks in Malaysia might be making inaccurate risk assessments due to false information on applications, potentially leading to financial losses from inflated insurance claims.

Additionally, customers may not be aware that providing incorrect information on applications or claims is illegal. Stretched finances due to rising costs of living and the gloomy economic climate had pushed some Malaysians to desperate measures to obtain credit and other means to make ends meet.

Misrepresenting information constituted fraud - By enhancing their capacity to identify irregularities indicating exaggeration or misrepresentation of information, financial institutions can proactively safeguard themselves against losses arising from customers' repayment challenges.

The study also pointed out that financial institutions frequently possess the evidence required to distinguish between fraudulent and legitimate applications. Banks prompt customers with arduous and time-consuming identity checks, resulting in increased costs and duplications that cause frustration for customers.

Many Faces Of Workplace Bullying

Bullying is about one person dominating another. It’s about dehumanizing, degrading, and devaluing targets. It’s about power and control.

WHAT IS BULLYING AT WORK - workplace bullying is “repeated, health-harming mistreatment by one or more employees of an employee: abusive conduct that takes the form of verbal abuse; or behaviors perceived as threatening, intimidating, or humiliating; work sabotage; or some combination of the above.

Some report indicated that one out of every two workers have been affected by workplace bullying. 67% of workplace bullies are men, and their preferred targets are women. The preferred targets of female bullies are also women.

FIVE TYPES OF WORKPLACE BULLIES - Bullying is either public or private. It is either overt or covert. Overt bullying behavior is obvious: it’s yelling, banging on a table; aggressive, threatening behavior. Covert bullying behavior is hidden, nuanced, subtle. It’s quiet and confusing, at times delivered in one-on-one meetings. Public bullying is witnessed by others. Private bullying is witnessed by only the bully and the target.

1: The In-Your-Face (IYF) :- The public/overt bully’s sole purpose is to denigrate someone in a public setting. The IYF bullies want witnesses. IYF wants everyone to know that it is in power, it is n charge, it is untouchable. In the workplace, it is the IYF managers who yell, bang the table, point the finger.

2: The Rat-Face (RF) :- RF bullies play dirty, sabotage your work, and can be easy to spot because RF likes to laugh at other people’s expense. RF wants you to know it is in power. RF is sly and sneaky; keep its targets and everyone else guessing. In the workplace, RF is the managers who intentionally mispronounce your name, plant its operatives on your team, and look at its phone and laugh while glancing at you.

3: The Two-Face (TF) :- The private/overt bully is first-team “all you” in public but humiliates and diminishes you in private. Like the IYF and RF bullies, TF bullies want you to know it is in power, it is in charge. But TF beatdown will happen in private, after singing the target’s praises in public. In the workplace, TF is the manager who tell anyone and everyone what a great job you’re doing and, in private, cut you down with biting, demeaning language.

4: The About-Face (AF) :- AF is a private/covert bully that seems to be heading one way, this brand of bully will abruptly pull a 180% next. Tough to put your finger on, the passive-aggressiveness of the AF is nuanced, subtle, hidden in the shadows. AF bullies are particularly gifted at making you believe it is your friend when it is using you and the information you share with them to direct their desired narrative, while advancing their own agenda and interests. In the workplace, AFs are the passive-aggressive managers who ask you about your meeting when it have already been updated about it from its precisely placed operatives.

5: Gaslighters :- Gaslighter is covert bullying which lands somewhere between the Rat-Face and the About-Face. Gaslighters overachieve its ability to trick and deceive. Gaslighter wants you to know its is in power, it is in charge by keeping you guessing and off-balance. In the workplace, gaslighting is done by the managers who sabotage your work, ask you for information you’ve already given them, move meeting locations and then ask, “Where have you been?”

Poor Salary - Employees Leaving

Malaysia's Companies risk losing talent as poor salary remains a strong motivator behind employees' career decisions. 91% of employees claimed a higher salary motivates them to switch employers this year.

For the remaining nine per cent of the respondents, they cited the following reasons:

• Bad workplace culture (50%)
• Poor work-life balance (27%)
• Overwhelming workload (12%)
• Career change (11%)

Latest report pointed out that employees are now expecting higher salaries and fair bonuses because of inflation and higher cost of living. For 54% of the respondents, they don't think they're being paid enough for their contributions, skills, and experience.

Despite their expectations, however, only 49% of the respondents said they received only up to five per cent of salary increase.

Another 39% said they have been told that their salaries will not be adjusted this year, while 31% said they will not be receiving any annual bonus for their contributions the previous year.
Switching jobs lead to higher pay

Their case wildly differs the situation for 30% of respondents who switched employers in the last 12 months, who said they received higher pay. Nearly half of them (49%) said they received over 20% salary increase after switching jobs. For others, they received:16% to 20% increase (12%), 11% to 15% increase (12%), 6% to 10% increase (11%) and less than five per cent (16%)

12,640 Years For Fake Savings Scheme

Thailand Criminal Court handed down prison terms totalling 12,640 years each to a married couple who ran a fake savings scheme, with victims reporting total losses of 1.3 billion baht. 
The terms were commuted to 5,056 years because they confessed. The law limits their total prison time to 20 years each.

There were nine defendants in this case - Wantanee Tippaveth, her husband Methi Chinpha and seven others.

The court heard evidence that from March to Oct 2019, the nine defendants advertised on Facebook, inviting people to invest in a savings scheme offering a high return. The minimum investment was 1,000 baht. After nine months, investors would get a return of 930 baht plus the 1,000-baht - or 1,930 baht in total.

A total of 2,533 people joined the scheme. The total investment sum was 1.3 billion baht. It was alleged the nine defendants did not use the money for investment but shared it among themselves.

The prosecutors charged all nine with multiple counts of fraud. The court found two of the nine defendants guilty as charged - Wantanee and Methi. The seven others were acquitted for lack of evidence.

Sales Standard Manual

Everyone must be on a same page once you have a sales team and a sales strategy. A sales playbook gives your team the tools and information they need to execute your strategy successfully. With a sales playbook, your sales reps know exactly what to do when selling your services—no matter the situation. Learn more about how to create a sales playbook that’ll help you win over even the most difficult customers.

Sales Playbook - is a collection of best practices for your sales team. It as a standard operation procedure (SOP) for selling your products/services. It outlines the entire selling process from prospecting to pitching. It can include sales scripts, guides and buyer personas that’ll help reps close a deal. They can also use it to learn more about the company’s goals and key performance indicators (KPIs) so they know how their performance will be measured.
A sales playbook includes all your sales plays so your reps know how to react during every stage of the selling process.

What Is a Sales Play - A sales play is basically a set of steps for a given situation. Your organization may have unique sales plays for different products or buyer personas. You can even create a sales play for each step in the sales pipeline. Sales plays are especially important because they’re what your reps will refer to on any given conversion. Ideally, you’ll have plays available for every situation they might encounter so they’ll be prepared for anything.

Why Sales Playbooks Are Important - Sales playbooks are vital for your sales team’s success for a number of reasons. A sales playbook can help you unify your sales team, save your sales team time, make it easy to hire and train new sales reps, and even help simplify the process of launching new products. 

(a) They create unity across the sales team. Everyone will be using the same sales approach based on proven best practices. When everyone uses the same tools, it can make your team feel more confident and less like they’re flying solo. This can even help foster team growth if you regularly pull in new suggestions and recommendations from your reps.

(b) They can make it easy to roll out new products. Rather than start from scratch with an entirely new marketing and sales plan, you can use your existing sales playbook to build a new sales play. Chances are, your existing sales practices will work just fine with a few tweaks.

(c) They can make it easy to hire and train new reps. New hires already have a ton to learn—so why not make it easier for them? A sales playbook has everything they’ll need to succeed. This also means they’ll be able to find answers themselves, reducing the time spent asking senior reps questions.

(d) They can save your existing reps time. Even the most veteran sales rep won’t have every detail of your sales plan memorized. Having a complete guide at their fingertips makes it easy for them to double-check details before interacting with clients. Also, it saves them from creating new sales content because it’s all there for them already.

(e) They can provide a better customer experience. With a sales playbook in place, customers don’t have to be the test subjects for new approaches. Instead, reps will be able to use proven practices to provide a solution tailored to the customers’ needs.

Components of a Sales Playbook
(a) Provide a clear and simple overview of your company. Longtime veterans will likely know all of this, but it can be a good way to help onboard newer reps. Include information on the industry and where your company fits in. Inckude basic summary of your company’s history and offerings, information on your mission and values. This helps guide sales efforts and ensure your reps stay in line with the company vision when promoting your products.

Provide a quick summary of your sales strategy. Obviously, you’ll go into more detail throughout the playbook, but use this space to specifically explain how the sales strategy works into the overall business strategy. Finally, also include a list of roles and responsibilities with an organizational chart. This gives your sales team good context on where they fit into the organization—and who they report to with questions.

(b) Products and Services - What exactly is your company selling? Your sales team needs to know your products intimately, and this is the space to explain it all. Include a robust primer on your offerings and their details. Highlight what makes your products so unique—and let your reps know what buyers would find appealing about them. It may help to attach product documentation or guides, but only if it doesn’t make the section too long and cumbersome.

Finally, you’ll want this section to also include details on pricing. Your sales reps should know the cost to make/manufacture the product as well as the cost you intend on selling it for. That way, if they’re offering a client a deal or bundle, they’ll be able to still make sure you’re turning a profit.

(c) Buyer Personas - If you don’t know who your buyers are, you’ll have a hard time marketing products to them. Crafting a good buyer persona takes a bit of research into your sales statistics, but the results are worth it.

First, you’ll want to see the basic demographics of the majority of your customers. With this information, you can start narrowing down a target audience. After you determine your audience, you can start thinking about their pain points. What are the problems they’re facing—and how can your products solve those issues?

Don’t forget to further segment your audience based on whether you’re selling B2B or B2C, as these customers usually have different motivations when buying products.

(d) Sales Methodology/Process - The sales methodology you choose will act as a framework for the entire sales process, so nail it down before getting too deep into your sales playbook. You’ll want to explain your reasoning behind choosing this methodology and then give reps tips on how they can follow it from prospecting to post-sales follow-up.

• Lead prospecting: You’ll want to explain how a rep should find leads. Do you have certain tools you’d like them to use? Or do you have instructions for cold calling?
• Lead qualification: Qualifying leads can make sure you don’t waste your time chasing down people who’ll never convert. What are your processes for going about this? Do you have lead qualification criteria or software?
• Closing sales: When a sale is looming on the horizon, there are likely some steps you’d like a rep to take. For example, do you have any policies on upselling or cross-selling products? Do you allow your reps to create custom quotes based on what combination of products the customer wants? Outline all of this in detail so there’s no ambiguity when it comes to signing on the dotted line.
• Post sales: Your sales rep isn’t done once the sale is closed. It’s always important to follow up—not just to make sure the customer is happy with the product, but also to see if there’s an opportunity to sell them anything else. However, you don’t want reps harassing customers, so create clear guidelines for how post-sales contact should go.

(e) Resources and Sales Enablement Materials - Everyone can benefit from the use of marketing materials, guides or resources. This is an important part of any sales playbook because it lets you create a library of pre-made content for agents. This section can include everything from voicemail scripts to social media content. Overall, think of this more as a database reps can come to if they get stuck or need more support on a sale.

(f) KPIs and Goals - Having set goals can help motivate your sales team. It also sets clear guidelines for what you expect from them. When establishing KPIs - consider the numbers of your top performers. Would it make sense to establish these as goals for the whole team?

Some KPIs you might want to measure include: Average profit margin

• Monthly sales growth
• Average cost per lead
• Sales per rep
• Product performance
• Quote-to-close ratio
• Average conversion time

Include clear information on how often you’ll measure performance and what consequences there are for not meeting the set goals.

(g) Commission Structure - The most important to a sales rep—establish clear rules on how commission works. What exactly will your reps get if they go above and beyond their established quotas? Include details on the base salary, and then explain with some examples how bonuses work. You’ll need to decide if you’re basing them on the number of sales or the highest-grossing sales.

Putting Together an Effective Sales Playbook
(a) Use Advice and Recommendation From the Sales Team - Your sales reps are your frontline warriors—so chances are, they’re an invaluable resource when deciding how to build your sales framework. They know which approaches work—and which don’t work. They’ve also likely heard every possible objection a person could have. Don’t let this knowledge go to waste. Pull in your sales team from the very beginning so this can be a collaborative process. Not only will this help you build a stronger playbook, but it’ll also help build a stronger team.

(b) Include a Framework for How To Align Sales and Marketing Teams - Your sales and marketing teams are two separate groups. But in reality, they share many of the same goals. There’s no reason why your playbook can’t take this into account. Your company will have stronger messaging on a united front, which could be more impressive to customers as they progress through the sales funnel.

(c) Choose a Specific Sales Methodology - Without a specific sales methodology, your playbook becomes a bit scattered and disorganized. To keep your company aligned and ensure you’re using proven methods, stick with an established framework. Some of the most common methodologies to consider includes:

• SPIN selling
• N.E.A.T. selling
• Conceptual selling
• SNAP selling

(d) Provide Training for Sales Reps - Before you test out your new sales playbook, have a training session for your sales reps. Just throwing a massive document at them and telling them to start using isn’t exactly the best way to ease into a new system. Instead, have a few different sessions where you talk through each section of the playbook. Use this time to answer any questions. Your reps might even have valuable insights you can add to the playbook before releasing the final version.

Amendment To Bankruptcy Discharge Act

Many Malaysian extended a helping hand to spouses, relatives or friends in need of money, they willingly and trustingly sign up as guarantors. Unfortunately, many of these guarantors later end up in a tight situation when the loans are not repaid, leading to some even being declared bankrupt or, worse, a few developing suicidal tendencies.

Consumer and Borrower Settlement Association of Malaysia claimed an average of about 10 people walking in to seek assistance. They are guarantors seeking help and were not even aware of the actual amount they supposedly owed. They kept paying for years because some of these loans were ‘sold’ to debt collectors, but nothing is ever given in black and white.

Guarantor - As at February this year, there were 268,744 bankruptcy cases administered by the Insolvency Department. Of this number, 634 cases involved individuals who had been declared bankrupt for being corporate guarantors while 17 cases were social guarantors.

Many people who acted as guarantors were often tricked by debt collectors or credit control officers. Generally, most Malaysians lack legal knowledge on matters related to debt settlement and repayments.

Lack Of Knowledge - Most Malaysians are not knowledgeable on banking matters and loans, and the laws that are in place such as the Limitation Act, Insolvency Act and Personal Data Protection Act. Some develop a suicidal tendency. They are unable to handle the pressure of having to deal with the debts not caused by them personally.

Bankruptcy Discharge & Second Chance - Following an announcement by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim during the tabling of the revised Budget 2023, bankrupts are now given a second chance to rebuild their lives, with the government having taken several initiatives.

These include bankruptcies with debts proved not to have exceeded RM50,000 and those who satisfy the required conditions being eligible for a discharge by the Certificate of Director of Insolvency (DGI), starting March 1.

Certain provisions in the Insolvency Act would also be amended to improve the administration of bankruptcy cases. A bankrupt is eligible for a discharge by the certificate of the DGI if his proven debt in the bankruptcy does not exceed RM50,000.

It is estimated that at least 130,000 people of the total 260,000 bankruptcy cases recorded as of early this year would be freed from bankruptcy with the passing of the amendments.