Korea to continue efforts to boost lending for SMEs

Published : Jan 14, 2019 - 13:48 Updated : Jan 14, 2019 - 13:48

South Korea will continue its efforts to encourage banks and other financial institutions to direct more loans to small and medium-sized enterprises, a senior financial regulator said Monday.

Kim Yong-beom, vice chairman of the Financial Services Commission, made the remarks at a regular meeting of the Financial Stability Board, which coordinates at the international level the work of national financial authorities around the world, in Switzerland earlier this week.

(Yonhap)

The outstanding loans for SMEs in South Korea have been on a steady rise, despite regulatory reforms, Kim told the meeting.

The outstanding loans for SMEs stood at 672 trillion won ($600.5 billion) in 2017, compared with 599 trillion won in 2015 and 512 trillion won in 2013, Kim said.

South Korea has stepped up efforts to channel more funds to smaller companies to shore up a struggling domestic economy.

Last year, the FSC unveiled a set of steps to allow companies to secure loans using their movable assets, including intellectual property and half-finished goods, as collateral.

Under the measures, intellectual property and a company's claims to future sales are usable as means to secure loans, the FSC said. (Yonhap)