What is a flash loan?

"Flitslening" (also known as flitskrediet, minilening, minikrediet, or popularly a snack loan/strangle loan) is a loan with a short term, varying from less than 1 month to sometimes 1 year. This involves relatively small amounts, usually less than €500, but the interest is often very high, sometimes up to 25%, and the closing commission can also be significant. Due to these unfavourable conditions, these loans are sometimes called 'strangle loans'.

Flitsleningen are generally used to bridge liquidity shortages until the next salary payment. Although these loans may seem attractive due to their fast availability, they often carry hidden costs which massively drive up the actual costs, sometimes up to 500% on an annual basis. In the Netherlands, flitsleningen are now subject to supervision by the Autoriteit Financiële Markten (AFM), and a maximum credit fee of 14% on an annual basis has been set to better protect consumers against exorbitant interest rates.