友利银行向一般放贷公司提供20亿韩元5.9%经营贷款

Woori Bank has supplied operating funds to a general moneylending company, rather than a certified premium lender, at an annual interest rate in the 5% range. Because funds provided to such lenders mainly flow to low-credit borrowers, the move is seen as aligning with efforts to expand inclusive finance.
According to the financial industry on the 3rd, Promise Loan recently borrowed 2 billion won in operating funds from Woori Bank at an annual rate of 5.9%. This is a very low level considering that the funding rates from savings banks and capital firms, which lenders typically borrow from, stand at around 8 to 9 percent annually. As the borrowing came from the banking sector with lower funding costs, lending capacity for low-credit borrowers is expected to expand significantly.
Analysts consider it unusual for Promise Loan, a general moneylending company, to secure low-interest funds from a commercial bank. Although the government has allowed bank borrowing since 2021 by operating a premium moneylending system to expand credit supply to low-credit borrowers, even premium lenders have found it difficult to borrow from banks.
In fact, as commercial banks hesitated to supply funds over concerns such as reputational risk, of the 2.2 trillion won total borrowing balance held by premium lenders as of June this year, the banking-sector borrowing balance stood at just 210 billion won, or only 9.5%. Even this carried a borrowing rate of 5.26%, higher than the average lending rate of deposit-taking banks (4.31%).
The financial sector views Promise Loan's bank borrowing—despite not being a premium lender—as an incentive for joining the New Leap Fund agreement. The New Leap Fund is a type of bad-bank program that purchases delinquent debts of 50 million won or less that have been overdue for more than seven years and reduces the debt. However, because the New Leap Fund purchases delinquent debts at about 5% of face value, lower than market price, participation by lenders has been sluggish. Of the top 30 firms in the moneylending industry, only 15 participate in the New Leap Fund.
The point is that even a general moneylending company that is not a premium lender can secure low-interest funds through bank borrowing if it participates in the New Leap Fund. "Purchased-debt collection firms that participate in the New Leap Fund can be granted rates comparable to those for premium lenders," a financial-sector official said. "If such cases accumulate, they could serve as a sufficient incentive for other firms hesitant to join the New Leap Fund."
The more bank borrowing with low funding costs expands, the more credit supply to low-credit borrowers is bound to increase. According to NICE Information Service, about 90% of unsecured-loan borrowers in the moneylending industry are low-credit borrowers with credit scores in the 700s or below.
"If the funding structure shifts to a bank-centered, low-interest system, the cost-saving effect is substantial, and lenders will gain the capacity to handle unsecured loans more actively," said Lee Jae-sun, executive managing director of the Korea Consumer Credit Finance Association. "The foundation for supplying loans to low-credit borrowers who might otherwise turn to illegal private lending will also broaden."