Press Releases - Financial Services Commission

Press Releases

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Sep 16, 2021

FSC and Industry Groups Agree on Six-month Extension of Loan Support for Small Businesses

FSC Chairman Koh Seungbeom held a meeting with the heads of the financial industrys self-regulatory organizations on September 16 and agreed to provide loan maturity extension and deferment of principal and interest payments to SMEs and small merchants that have been struggling through COVID-19 for six more months until the end of March 2022. Chairman Koh and the heads of financial associations also agreed to work for an orderly normalization process as there are concerns about potential risks to financial institutions and accumulation of payment burdens on debtors. Background The financial authorities have held a series of meetings recently with relevant groups and institutions over the issue of whether to extend the period of loan maturity extensions and payment deferrals in order to listen to diverse opinions and establish a common ground. Today, the government and the financial industry groups reached a final agreement to extend the availability of loan maturity extensions and deferments of principal and interest payments for SMEs and small merchants for six more months until the end of March 2022. The financial industry groups agreed on an extension as businesses continue to face difficulties amid rising COVID-19 cases and the total amount of support provided through interest payment deferrals as well as the balance of loans have not grown to significant levels. Working on Orderly Normalization Process The government and the financial industry groups agreed to work for an orderly normalization from COVID-19 support measures by implementing the following. a) For debtors with repayment capabilities, lenders will offer repayment plans tailored to individual debtors needs by offering up to one year of non-payment period and up to five years for installment payments. b) For vulnerable debtors, assistance programs will be offered through debt adjustment. Pre-workout programs offered by individual lenders will be made available not only to individual business owners b
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Sep 14, 2021

FSC Chairman Discusses Important role of Microfinance Policy

FSC Chairman Koh Seungbeom visited the Korea Inclusive Finance Support Center on September 14 and held a meeting with small merchants and self-employed business owners on the governments microfinance programs. Chairmans Remarks Microfinance policies are aimed at providing both financing and welfare opportunities. On the one hand, there is an obligation to make available adequate levels of low interest rate loans and debt adjustment opportunities to those that need them. On the other hand, there exist concerns over the possibility of loan defaults and the issue of moral hazard. Microfinance opportunities need to be provided in a flexible manner against the backdrop of a financial environment with these conflicting issues. With the lowering of the maximum legal lending and enhanced household debt management measures, lower income individuals with low credit backgrounds may face difficulties in accessing financing opportunities. With lower income individuals and other vulnerable groups continuing to face economic hardships due to COVID-19, it is important to make sufficient support available to them. To this end, the authorities have increased the amount of support available for microfinance from KRW7.9 trillion to KRW9.6 trillion.In this regard, a number of new microloan products were launched in this year to help prevent lower income earners and low credit holders from falling into a lending cliff. For individuals that have been hit by the COVID-19 and for young adults, the authorities will work to come up with more targeted support measures. For self-employed business owners facing the risk of business closure due to COVID-19, loan maturity extensions and payment deferrals as well as ultra-low rate loans have been made available. The authorities will look into ways to improve the debt adjustment programs to help those unable to pay off debt get back on their feet. The authorities will also work to introduce a new installment savings program with interest rate benefi
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Sep 13, 2021

FSC Plans to Make Fractional Trading of Domestic and Foreign Stocks More Widely Available

The FSC announced its plans to make fractional trading of both domestic and foreign stocks more widely available to help improve access and convenience for investors. Background In 2019, the FSC allowed fractional trading of foreign stocks offered by Shinhan Investment and Korea Investment Securities by designating them as innovative financial services to be granted regulatory exemptions under its financial regulatory sandbox program. As a result, by the end of June 2021, the number of fractional stock traders at Shinhan Investment and Korea Investment Securities reached about 140,000 and 510,000, respectively, with their investment amounts standing at KRW270 million and KRW750 million each. However, fractional trading of domestic stocks remained unavailable due to the principle of indivisibility of shares as well as the non-fractional share-based design with which the domestic securities trading and depository infrastructures was set up. To help improve investor access and convenience, the FSC plans to make improvements to the current fractional trading system and make fractional trading of both domestic and foreign stocks available. Key Details Unlike the current system where individual securities firms have to apply for regulatory exemptions to provide fractional trading services, the new system will be based on a special infrastructure set up at Korea Securities Depository (KSD) that is dedicated to fractional trading and can be accessed and used by any securities firms that wish to offer fractional trading services to their customers. This will strengthen the safety and convenience of fractional trading in both domestic and foreign stocks. (Foreign Stocks) Stock trading in fractional shares of foreign stocks will be directly recorded in the securities firms account books. KSD will maintain separate account books on fraction trades and regularly check their consistency with those of securities firms. Investors will be able to trade in fractional shares of foreig
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Sep 10, 2021

FSC Chairman Meets with Heads of Major Financial Holding Companies

FSC Chairman Koh Seungbeom met with the heads of major financial holding companies on September 10 and held talks on ways to strengthen household debt management as well as the issue of loan maturity extensions and payment deferrals. As it was the first time that Chairman Koh has held a meeting with the five CEOs of financial holding companies in his current role, at the beginning of the meeting, Chairman Koh laid out his principle of financial policy and supervisory role of the FSC as aiming for market-friendly policy and supervision with respect for the creativity and autonomy of financial institutions. With regard to the matters concerning internal management of individual institutions, such as interest rates, fees and dividends, Chairman Koh stated that he will respect individual firms decisions. Even when intervention is inevitable for the purpose of maintaining macroeconomic soundness and consumer protection, Chairman Koh said that interventions will take place at a minimum level through a fair and transparent procedure in a market-friendly and market-centered approach based on sufficient communication and collaboration with market participants. On the issue of household debt growth, Chairman Koh raised concerns about asset market overheating and the mutually reinforcing effects between the two. Chairman Koh spoke about household debt management as a top policy priority and pledged to effectively implement the measures in place while working to come up with improved measures. With regard to the loan maturity extensions and payment deferrals set to expire at the end of September, Chairman Koh said that the authorities are considering diverse factors, such as the demand from SMEs and small merchants, repayment burdens of long-term borrowers, potential default risks and so on, while emphasizing the importance of cooperation to arrive at a reasonable solution. Chairman Koh and the five CEOs also held talks on regulatory issues surrounding digital transformation an
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Sep 09, 2021

Authorities Hold Kick-off Meeting on Designation of Additional Data Specializing Institutions

The FSC held the first taskforce meeting on the designation of additional data specializing institutions on September 9 as the authorities take into account recent growth in interest and demand for data convergence between financial and non-finance related data. In response to such growth in demand, the financial authorities are planning to designate additional entities as data specializing institutions alongside the four entities already operating in this capacity. In order to prevent excessive competition arising between data specializing institutions, the issue of designating additional entities will be thoroughly reviewed and discussed by experts within the taskforce who specialize in the field of consumer protection and data convergence. The taskforce will operate until October and decide on the basic principles and standards for designating qualified data specializing institutions and establish transparent and objective procedures for designating such entities. Along this line, the authorities are conducting a week-long demand survey. The authorities plan to make a more detailed announcement in October with the selection of additional data specializing institutions expected in the first quarter of next year. * Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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Sep 09, 2021

FSC Announces 10% Stake in Woori Financial Group to be Sold

The FSC announced its plan to sell ten percent of the remaining stake (15.13%) held by the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation in Woori Financial Group through competitive bidding. Background With the goal of complete privatization of WFG, the government has been selling KDICs stake in WFG through a series of block sales and competitive auctions over the years. The sales allowed the government to recoup about 89.6 percent of public funds and afforded WFG with management autonomy as its MOU with the KDIC has been retracted in 2016. The KDICs sale of 29.7 percent stake in December 2016 further accelerated WFGs privatization process. However, as the KDIC still maintained the largest shareholder status, the Public Fund Oversight Committee announced the roadmap for selling remaining stake in WFG in June 2019. Thereafter, the KDIC sold two percent of its remaining stake through a block sale on April 9, 2021. After assessing market demand, on August 23, the PFOC decided to sell up to ten percent of KDICs remaining stake in WFG through competitive bidding. Details Ten percent of shares will be put up for sale with minimum bidding of one percent through a competitive auction with highest bidders winning the auction. However, when no workable competition is established or the bidding price is below the PFOC set price, the sales method may change to a block sale. Investors who newly acquire four percent or more of stake are granted right to recommend an outside director to the board. Successful sales of KDICs stake in WFG at this round may lead to the completion of the privatization process of WFG in essence, since the KDIC may no longer be the largest shareholder with its right to recommend an outside director also taken away. Schedule With the sales notice announced on September 9, letters of intent (LoIs) will be due on October 8 and the bidding will close and winning bidders selected in November. * Please refer to the attache PDF for details.
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Sep 09, 2021

Additional New Deal Fund Worth KRW100 Billion Planned for This Year

The FSC announced the governments plan to create an additional New Deal fund in the amount of KRW100 billion this year. The additional New Deal fund will be financed through KRW80 billion investments from the private sector including investments from institutional and retail investors while the remaining KRW20 billion will be financed through fiscal spending. The fiscal investment portion of the fund will be injected with a subordinate position to help absorb losses first and alleviate risks for private sector investors. The newly created New Deal fund will make investments in listed companies or prospective listed companies in K-New Deal sectors. Profits generated from investments will be shared with the retail investors who made investments in the fund. The Korea Development Bank and the Korea Growth Investment Corporation will announce the opening of applications for fund management companies on September 10. They will select eight fund management companies by the end of October and the sales process will open for two weeks for retail investors at the end of November or early December. The authorities plan to keep the public regularly informed about fund management strategies and closely monitor the status and progress of investments. * Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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Sep 09, 2021

FSC Chairman Holds Talks with SME and Small Merchant Groups

FSC Chairman Koh Seungbeom met with the heads of the Korea Federation of SMEs and other relevant industry groups representing small merchants on September 9 and held talks on the coronavirus support measures. The following is a summary of Chairman Kohs remarks. The Korean economy has undergone major changes since the coronavirus outbreak began in February last year. In response to COVID-19, the government rolled out KRW175 trillion-plus stimulus programs to overcome the crisis. To support SMEs and small merchants, ultra-low rate loans and special guarantees were provided. Along this line, maturity extensions on existing loans and deferments on interest and principal payments became available through all financial sectors. Following concerns over possible credit rating downgrades and deteriorating lending conditions, the authorities urged all financial sectors to take into account individual businesses recovery prospects when assessing their credit standing for loans. Due to these measures, the liquidity risks of SMEs and small merchants have come down in large parts with improvements also shown in terms of their credit standings. The economy and financial markets now show signs of stability backed by active response from the government and efforts by businesses. However, SMEs and small merchants in contact-intensive sectors, such as restaurants, hospitality, tourism and wholesale and retail, continue to face difficult situations, especially with growing numbers of newly infected cases from July. With regard to the possibility of providing another extension on loan maturity extensions and payment deferrals, which have been extended twice for a six-month period each, the authorities will work to come up with optimal measures as soon as possible while considering the coronavirus situation, conditions of the real economy and comments from the financial sectors. * Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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Sep 08, 2021

FSC Issues 2-YR Extension of Designation on Six ‘Innovative Financial Services’

The FSC decided to issue 2-year extension of designation on the six previously designated innovative financial services at its 16th regular meeting held on September 8. The innovative financial services selected for two more years in the regulatory sandbox program were those that had been designated on October 2, 2019. The 2-year extension period will be between October 2, 2021 and October 1, 2023. The total number of innovative financial services stands at 153 as of today. Overview of Innovative Financial Services 1) The prepaid rewards points based debit card issuance service by Hana Card 2) The gift card transaction service for financial investment through online e-commerce platforms by Korea Investment Securities 3) The individually tailored pension and asset management platform service by Wealth Guide 4) The facial recognition enabled payment service by Shinhan Card 5) The vishing scam and false wire transfer prevention service by Korea Credit Bureau 6) The credit evaluation service using telecommunications bills and e-commerce data history for small merchants by SK Telecom * Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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Sep 08, 2021

FSC Grants MyData Business Licenses to More Financial Businesses

The FSC decided to grant MyData business licenses to five additional financial institutions at its 16th regular meeting held on September 8. Five additional entities were granted final approvals to operate MyData businesses while three more businesses were given preliminary approvals. Industrial Bank of Korea, DGB Daegu Bank, Korea Investment Securities, Kiwoom Securities and LG CNS were given final approvals while Shinhan Investment, NH Investment Securities and KB Securities were given preliminary approvals. The FSC will continue to accept applications for MyData businesses and issue licenses on a rolling basis. * Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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Sep 08, 2021

Household Loans, August 2021

The outstanding balance of loans to households rose KRW8.5 trillion in all financial sectors at the end of August 2021 (up 9.5% y-o-y).The balance of household loans increased KRW6.2 trillion in the banking sector and KRW2.3 trillion in the non-banking sector. All financial sectors (y-o-y): +9.7% (Jun 2021) +10.0% (Jul 2021) +9.5% (Aug 2021) By type, mortgage loans went up KRW7.2 trillion in August, expanding at a similar level compared with the previous month (up KRW7.4 trillion) as housing market transactions remained active. Other types of loans including credit loans grew at a slower rate (up KRW1.4 trillion) compared with the previous month (up KRW7.9 trillion) due to large scale refunds of IPO subscription deposits taking place in the beginning of the month. The growth of household loan balance in August has dropped compared with the previous month but still remains above pre-pandemic levels. The financial authorities will continue to strengthen management until the trend of household debt growth shows signs of stability. * Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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Sep 08, 2021

Joint Job Fair Held in Financial Sectors

The FSC announced the opening of the 2021 joint job fair in the financial industry which will be held online at www.financejobfair.co.kr between September 8 and 9. The 5th annual job fair event is co-hosted by six financial industry groups with 55 financial institutions offering employment opportunities to job seekers. The two-day event will feature one-stop career support services using AI technologies, career information sessions offered by employers, a chance to communicate with current employees as well as virtual interviews with employers. Chairman Koh Seungbeom delivered congratulatory remarks for the event and spoke about changing dynamics in employment conditions and efforts to create quality jobs in the financial sectors. More specifically, Chairman Koh said that the acceleration of digital transformation has also transformed job markets in the financial sectors, with contactless sales channels and automation of work becoming more prevalent. However, Chairman Koh stated that there are possibilities for creating new quality jobs as newly developed financial services become available using digital technologies. As such, Chairman Koh urged financial institutions to pay special attention on their new recruitment practices and pledged to work on improving conditions to help create more jobs in the financial sectors. * Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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Sep 08, 2021

FSC Selects 20 Entities to Participate in Digital-Data Testbed Program to Facilitate Fintech Ideas

The FSC selected 20 entities out of 60 applicants for participation in the digital-data testbed program (D-testbed) in an effort to promote fintechs and facilitate innovative ideas in providing financial services. Between July 28 and August 20, a total of 60 applications have been received for the D-testbed program in the pre-designated areas of (a) financial support for vulnerable groups, (b) credit evaluation advancement and (c) free topics. Out of 45 qualified applicants, the FSC has selected 20 entities to take part in the D-testbed program. The D-testbed program offers fintech startups and prospective entrepreneurs a chance to test out innovative ideas and technologies for their viability, making use of the data made available from the financial industry. The government as well as the public and private sectors have been working together on building large scale data to be made available for use by private sector entities. As such, the D-testbed program provides financial data and the environment for development and analysis to businesses and entrepreneurs that have not had much opportunities for testing their ideas before. The D-testbed program is expected to serve as an important venue for seeking solutions to a variety of issues in financial sectors through collaboration between the government and private sector. The participants will test out their business ideas for 11 weeks between September 27 and December 10 and announce their test results in December this year. For further information, please visit www.dtest.fintech.or.kr. * Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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Sep 06, 2021

Authorities Hold Information Session with VASPs to Provide Support for Business Registration

The Korea Financial Intelligence Unit and the Financial Supervisory Service held an information session with virtual asset service providers about their business registration requirements and other relevant issues via a virtual meeting on September 6. It served as a venue for providing support as VASPs prepare for their business registration prior to the September 24 deadline and for urging them to take measures to minimize user damages. About 30 VASPs that have already received their ISMS certifications or are in the pending status took part in this session. Key Details (Prior to the registration deadline) For VASPs that are planning to operate a virtual asset trading platform but are not planning to offer KRW-based or other fiat currency based exchange services, the authorities advised them to terminate their fiat currency based exchange services without delay by the September 24 registration deadline. When filing their registration report, these VASPs should submit a document confirming the termination of their fiat currency based exchange services. For VASPs that are unable to meet the requirements and are terminating their operation, the authorities advised them to take measures to minimize damages to service users by issuing advance notices about their business termination at least 7 days prior (until Sep. 17) to the expected termination date, informing users about the withdrawal procedures being available until at least 30 days after terminating services and discarding users personal information according to the relevant rules. (After the registration deadline) The KoFIU and the FSS will closely review the registration documents and requirements pursuant to the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Information (the Act hereinafter). As the process may take up to three months, close cooperation is required from VASPs to ensure a seamless review. VASPs have also been advised to set up and prepare anti-money laundering (AML) systems pursuant to the Act
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Sep 03, 2021

FSC Proposes Legislative Changes to Enhance Corporate Disclosure and Investor Protection

The FSC proposed revisions to the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act and its subordinate statute with an aim to improve the corporate disclosure rules and enhance investor protections. The revision proposal is a follow-up measure to the governments plans to stamp out unlawful and unfair trading activities and to improve corporate disclosure rules announced in October 2020 and January 2021, respectively.The revision proposal will be put up for public notice for 40 days from September 3 to October 13, 2021. Key Revisions for Improving Corporate Disclosure Rules a) Strengthen the effectiveness of monetary sanction on violation of the so-called five percent rule which requires investors holding five percent or more of equity securities of a listed company or those changing their holding status by one percent or more in the company to file a report with the FSC and the KRX within five days of such change taking place by raising the maximum fine from 1/100,000 of market capitalization to 1/10,000 of market capitalization b) Enhance disclosure rules for issuing private convertible bonds (CBs) or bonds with warrants (BWs) by requiring companies to file material disclosure at least one week prior to the payment due date in order to make relevant information available to investors in advance c) Require newly listed companies to submit their quarterly and semi-annual reports covering the accounting period immediately preceding their listing to make relevant information available to investors d) Require companies that decide to issue perpetual bonds to file material disclosure within one day from making such decision to strengthen investor protection e) Improve penalty standards for violating the periodic and material disclosure requirements by adjusting the level of fines that can be imposed on both listed companies (between KRW1 billion and KRW2 billion) and non-listed companies (from maximum KRW2 billion to maximum KRW1 billion) for the purpose of imposing
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Aug 26, 2021

Organizational Change at KoFIU to Help Improve Transparency in Virtual Asset Transactions

The FSC and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety issued an advance notice of organizational change at the Korea Financial Intelligence Unit (KoFIU) which will add a specific division and personnel tasked to oversee virtual asset transactions. This proposal for organizational shift is intended to improve transparency in virtual asset transactions as the revised Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information went into effect in March this year. The legislative change pertaining to the organizational shift creates a new division and adds personnel specifically tasked with the management and supervision of virtual asset service providers and their AML duties. The addition of working level personnel will strengthen the KoFIUs capacity for inspection and analysis with regard to virtual asset transactions. With additional personnel and organization, the KoFIU will work to establish a proper market order and improve transparency in virtual asset transactions. The legislative change is expected to be finalized and become effective in September. * Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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Aug 25, 2021

FSC Changes Rules to Allow Cross-border ETF Scheme with China

The FSC approved changes in the Enforcement Rules of the Financial Investment Services and Capital Markets Act and other relevant industry regulation to allow China-based exchange traded funds (ETFs) listed in the Shanghai Stock Exchange to be registered for sale by local asset managers in Korea effective from August 27 this year. The Korea Exchange and the Shanghai Stock Exchange signed an MOU in May this year to establish a cross-border ETF scheme (ETF Connected). However, the current regulatory framework allows only foreign based ETFs from OECD members, Hong Kong and Singapore to be eligible for registration in Korea. As such, the FSC changed the relevant rules for a seamless implementation of the cross-border ETF link between Korea and China. The authorities expect that there will be more opportunities for domestic investors to make investment in foreign assets. * Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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Aug 16, 2021

Authorities Provide Consulting to VASPs and Advise Supplementary Actions Prior to Registration

As a follow-up to the governments plan to enhance supervision on virtual asset service providers (VASPs) and their transaction activities,the FSC and relevant institutions provided on-site consulting to the 25 VASPs between June 15 and July 16 and advised them to take supplementary measures prior to their business registration. Out of the 33 VASPs that have already obtained the ISMS certification or are in the pending status, a total of 25 entities showed interest in receiving consulting from the authorities.As such, the FSC along with other relevant institutions provided on-site consulting to the 25 VASPs to review their preparation for business registration and check the level of stability in their transactions system. Key Details (Preparation for Registration) Pursuant to the Act on Reporting and Using Specified Financial Transaction Information (the Act hereinafter), VASPs should file necessary documents for registration until September 24 and adhere to AML duties from the time of their registration. As such, VASPs should have their own internal procedures, human resources and facilities ready to implement the AML requirements at the time of registration. When consulting was provided, no VASPs were found to have met all the registration requirements, and they have shown inadequate levels of preparedness for the implementation of the AML duties and other requirements set forth by the Act. Out of the 25 VASPs, 19 entities have obtained ISMS certification, but only four VASPs were found to have their business operation with real-name verified accounts. The VASPs that have obtained ISMS certification but have no real-name accounts may still apply for business registration but for the category that is barred from offering exchange services between virtual assets and a fiat currency. With regard to the level of preparedness in adhering to the AML requirements, the lack of employees overseeing this matter and insufficient system preparation for suspicious transactions
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Aug 11, 2021

Household Loans, July 2021

The outstanding balance of household loansin all financial sectors increased KRW15.2 trillion from the previous month at the end of July 2021 (up 10.0% y-o-y). The household loan balance rose KRW9.7 trillion in the banking sector and KRW5.6 trillion in the non-banking sector. All financial sectors (y-o-y): +9.6% (May 2021) +9.7% (Jun 2021) +10.0% (Jul 2021) By type, mortgage loans grew KRW7.5 trillion in July, rising at a faster rate compared with the previous month (up KRW6.4 trillion y-o-y) due to a steady rise in demand for jeonseloans. Other types of loans including credit loans expanded KRW7.7 trillion due to increased demand for large scale IPO subscriptions in the last week of July. The financial authorities will work to ensure that the pace of growth in household loans remains within the target of 5 to 6 percent for this year while also working to effectively implement the household debt management measures. * Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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Aug 11, 2021

FSC Chairman Discusses the Need to Provide Credit Recovery Support to Individuals

FSC Chairman Eun Sung-soo met with the heads of financial industry groups and other relevant officials on August 11 and held talks on the necessity of credit recovery support for individuals struggling through the COVID-19. For individuals, the authorities have expanded the availability of microfinance supports for vulnerable debtors. However, unlike the temporary support made available to small merchants and SMEs, such as maturity extensions and preferential credit evaluation under the COVID-19 situation, the authorities agreed that the level of support extended to individual debtors has been inadequate. As such, Chairman Eun talked about the need to provide support for individuals with credit recovery to help prevent vulnerable individuals or individual business owners from facing the risk of a credit score downgrade, etc. In this regard, the financial industry group leaders and officials agreed to hold off sharing or using the payment overdue and late payment records of individuals for the purpose of evaluating their credit scores (overdue payments and late payments occurred during the pandemic only).All financial sectors pledged active cooperation on this matter. * Please refer to the attached PDF for details.
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