"Stop the Tricks and Compensate 100%" Hong Kong ELS Victims Take to the Streets Again

Subscribers "Reject Voluntary Adjustment Plans That Are Not Full Compensation"
‘Bank Run’ with Stepping on Portraits and Transferring Deposits
Assemblywoman Yang Jeongsuk Claims "Compensation Plan Announced by Financial Authorities Is Grossly Insufficient"

KB Kookmin Bank held a board meeting and decided to accept the Financial Supervisory Service's dispute mediation standards regarding losses from Hong Kong H-Share Index (Hang Seng China Enterprises Index·HSCEI) based equity-linked securities (ELS). Meanwhile, Hong Kong ELS product subscribers held a rally in front of the KB Kookmin Bank headquarters, raising their voices by saying, “We reject the voluntary adjustment plan that is not full compensation.” These subscribers also took protest actions such as a 'bank run.'

At the “Nationwide Financial Fraud Contract Nullification” rally held at noon on the 29th at the KB Kookmin Bank New Building in Yeouido, Seoul, Gil Seong-ju, chairman of the Hong Kong ELS Victims Association, said, “It is a very unsatisfactory compensation plan,” and assessed, “It seems that under no circumstances will the bank take more than 50% responsibility.”

Yang Jeong-suk, a lawmaker of the Reform New Party (left), is giving a negative evaluation of the dispute resolution guidelines for equity-linked securities (ELS) released by the Financial Supervisory Service. Photo by Jeon Young-joo ange@

Yang Jeong-sook, a member of the Reform New Party who attended the rally following a press conference on the 18th, agreed, saying, “The compensation plan announced by the financial authorities is far from sufficient to compensate for your damages.” She also emphasized, “This compensation plan is even a step backward compared to the compensation plan during the 2019 overseas interest rate-linked derivative-linked fund (DLF) loss incident, and after the April 10 general election, we will make efforts at the committee level by summoning Financial Services Commission Chairman Kim Ju-hyun, Financial Supervisory Service Director Lee Bok-hyun, and bank presidents to the National Assembly’s Political Affairs Committee.”

Subscribers who took the stage to share their damage cases also demanded 100% principal compensation. Mr. A, who has been dealing with Kookmin Bank for 40 years since the Housing Bank era, lamented, “I repeatedly begged to manage the money safely to protect the principal because it was money to be used for hospital bills and nursing care fees for my elderly mother suffering from severe dementia, stroke, and colon cancer, but to the bank clerk, I seemed to be just an easy-to-handle ‘financial sucker.’”

Mr. A continued, “Where in the world are there such shameless people who take others’ money, cause losses, and then brag about giving compensation as if it were charity? The five major banks, including Kookmin Bank, should stop tricks and provide uniform, full compensation,” he cried out. Mr. B, who took the microphone consecutively, warned, “It must be remembered that only compensating 100% of the principal and apologizing is the only way to restore the trust and confidence of customers who have trusted and dealt with the bank for a long time.”

Subscribers of Hong Kong H Index (Hang Seng China Enterprises Index·HSCEI) equity-linked securities (ELS) are moving inside the branch with KB Kookmin Bank paper passbooks. Photo by Jeon Young-joo ange@

At the rally that day, there was also a protest action called a ‘bank run.’ This involved withdrawing deposits from Kookmin Bank and transferring them to other banks. A photo in the style of a memorial portrait with the words “KB Kookmin Bank, Fraud Bank of Korea” was spread out in front of the branch, and subscribers stepped on the photo as they moved. At the entrance, they tore up their Kookmin Bank paper passbooks, threw them into transparent plastic bags, then entered and took a number ticket. Victims waiting inside showed various reactions such as “I will withdraw about 3 million won first,” and “I will withdraw 300 million won and close the account.” According to the organizers, about 100 people participated in the bank run. At the same time, subscribers remaining at the rally site used applications to transfer their deposits to other banks.