Shinhan Financial Group Provides Additional 105 Billion KRW Support to Small Business Owners and Self-Employed

"Stabilizing Livelihoods, Supporting Private Enterprises"

Shinhan Financial Group will provide an additional 105 billion KRW in support for small business owners, self-employed individuals, and vulnerable borrowers.

On the 6th, Shinhan Financial announced the '2024 Small Business Owners and Self-Employed Win-Win Financial Package' containing these details. To prepare this measure, Shinhan Financial held a CEO meeting and working-level department meetings last weekend chaired by Chairman Jin Ok-dong to discuss win-win financial plans.

Chairman Jin stated, “Win-win finance should not end as a one-time declarative slogan; it aligns with Shinhan’s founding philosophy,” adding, “We will actively support small business owners and self-employed individuals suffering from recent high interest rates and inflation by expanding existing programs and providing new support.”

The announced 2024 Small Business Owners and Self-Employed Win-Win Financial Package includes a total of 105 billion KRW in win-win financial support plans: ▲an additional 61 billion KRW to extend the period and expand the target of the existing win-win financial support programs ▲and 44 billion KRW in new support to alleviate financial burdens for small business owners and youth.

First, Shinhan Bank will provide an additional 61 billion KRW to extend the support period by one year for the existing ‘Win-Win Financial Support Program’ targeting small and medium-sized corporations and expand the support target to include self-employed individuals.

Previously, Shinhan Bank operated a win-win financial support program worth 86.2 billion KRW for small and medium-sized corporations, which included ▲up to a 3 percentage point interest rate reduction on loans with rates above 7% ▲insurance premium support for customers using Korea Credit Guarantee Fund’s accounts receivable insurance ▲up to a 1 percentage point reduction in interest rate increases for borrowers with downgraded credit ratings ▲interest support for borrowers whose COVID-19 secondary guarantee loans ended ▲a 2 percentage point reduction in overdue interest ▲and preferential interest rates when converting variable rate loans to fixed rate loans.

Along with extending and expanding this support program, Shinhan Bank plans to actively provide related information through its branches and the mobile platform ‘Shinhan SOL Bank’ to ensure prompt early support within this year.

Support for small business owners and youth using high-interest loans will also be expanded. First, through Shinhan Bank’s own small business support program, 23 billion KRW worth of interest cashback will be provided to borrowers using policy loan products to alleviate interest burdens by about 2 percentage points.

Additionally, to reduce financial costs for small and medium-sized corporate customers, a new ‘Loan Brokerage Platform’ will be developed to compare loan interest rates and limits from multiple financial institutions, and 5 billion KRW worth of win-win financial vouchers will be provided to platform users.

Furthermore, through a special contribution to the Credit Guarantee Foundation, a new low-interest special guarantee product will be supplied with a limit of approximately 150 billion KRW, and financial support worth 13.5 billion KRW will be provided for young self-employed individuals.

To alleviate the burden of monthly rent for low-income households, Shinhan Bank will also provide living expense support. For customers using Jeonse loans and the Buttimgok Jeonse loan products, up to 100,000 KRW cashback will be offered for utility bills such as maintenance fees and communication charges, totaling 2.5 billion KRW in living expense support.

Chairman Jin emphasized, “This announcement is only the beginning of various supports the group can provide to coexist with financially vulnerable groups,” adding, “We must not stop at declarations but continuously check progress, listen to the voices of small business owners at sales sites, and continuously improve any shortcomings.”

He also stated, “Shinhan Financial will actively participate in government policies for public livelihood stabilization and strive to fulfill ongoing responsibilities and duties as a corporate citizen.”