Soft loan A soft loan is a loan with a below-market rate of interest. This is also known as soft financing. Sometimes soft loans provide other concessions to borrowers, such as long repayment periods or interest holidays. Soft loans are usually provided by governments to projects they think are worthwhile. The World Bank and other development institutions provide soft loans to developing countries. An example of a soft loan is China's Export-Import Bank, who recently gave a $2 billion soft loan to Angola to help build infrastructure. In return, the Angolan government gave China a stake in oil exploration off the coast. Soft Loan What Does Soft Loan Mean? 1. A loan with a below-market rate of interest. 2. Loans made by multinational development banks and the World Bank to developing countries. Typically, soft loans have extended grace periods in which only interest or service charges are due. They also offer longer amortization schedules and lower interest rates than conventional bank loans.