Loan to Son Tae-seung's Relatives Also Confirmed at Woori Financial Savings Bank

Loan Execution Worth 700 Million Won... Confirmed on the 13th

[Image source=Yonhap News]

It has been confirmed that loans related to former Woori Financial Group Chairman Sohn Tae-seung's relatives were executed not only by Woori Bank but also by Woori Financial Savings Bank.

According to data received on the 30th from Shin Jang-sik, a member of the Innovation Party for the Fatherland, from Woori Financial Savings Bank, a loan worth approximately 700 million KRW was executed in January to a corporation related to former Chairman Sohn's relatives. Some of the loan has been repaid, and as of the 27th, the outstanding balance is 683 million KRW.

A representative of Woori Financial Savings Bank stated, "Through an internal review, we identified the loan related to former Chairman Sohn's relatives on the 13th," adding, "However, upon internal examination, there were no procedural issues, and since the loan went through the screening process, there is currently no problem."

Woori Financial Savings Bank has initiated an official audit regarding the loan to former Chairman Sohn's relatives. The bank stated in the data, "We have requested preliminary audit materials for the audit," and "After analyzing the preliminary audit materials, we plan to proceed to the main audit."

So far, the Financial Supervisory Service has identified the scale of loans related to former Chairman Sohn's relatives within Woori Financial Group as 61.6 billion KRW (42 cases). The Financial Supervisory Service received two internal reports before May and conducted the first on-site inspection from June to July, focusing on loans handled by Woori Bank from April 2020 to last January. It concluded that 28 out of the 42 cases, accounting for two-thirds, did not follow the usual standards and procedures in all processes including loan screening and post-management. In particular, 19 cases amounting to 27 billion KRW were found to have experienced defaults or delinquencies.

Assemblyman Shin Jang-sik said, "The limitations of the Financial Supervisory Service's inspection, which was limited to Woori Bank, have been confirmed," and added, "Since loans through savings banks have been identified, the scope of the Financial Supervisory Service's inspection should be expanded to cover all Woori Financial Group affiliates handling credit. The prosecution must thoroughly investigate whether there was any external pressure at the group company level."