"As Part of Productive and Inclusive Finance"
Woori Financial Group Announces Additional Measures to Strengthen Inclusive Finance
Launch of Emergency Living Expense Loan Products and More
Woori Bank has announced the implementation of a loan interest rate cap system, limiting personal credit loan rates to a maximum of 7% per annum. For financially vulnerable groups such as young people and people with disabilities, the bank will provide emergency living expense loans of up to 10 million won at interest rates below 7% per annum.
On December 22, Woori Financial Group unveiled additional measures for its Future Mutual Growth Project, which was first announced at the end of September. First, Woori Bank will cap the interest rate on all personal credit loans at a maximum of 7% per annum, regardless of credit rating. Starting January 2 next year, the 7% interest rate cap will apply when customers with personal credit loans of one year or longer renew (re-contract) their loan terms. From the first quarter of next year, the scope will be further expanded, so that customers who have maintained deposits, installment savings, credit cards, or subscription savings accounts with Woori Bank for over a year and apply for a new credit loan will also benefit from the 7% maximum interest rate cap.
Woori Bank will also provide emergency living expense loans of up to 10 million won to financially marginalized groups. Eligible customers include young adults, homemakers, temporary workers, people with disabilities, and others who have banked with Woori Bank for at least one year. These loans, too, will carry interest rates capped at 7% per annum. The bank will adopt a “non-equal installment repayment loan” structure, allowing borrowers to freely set their monthly repayment amounts. The program will launch in the first quarter of next year with a total scale of 100 billion won, with flexible expansion depending on demand among financially marginalized groups. An alternative credit assessment model using non-financial data such as telecommunications bills, micropayments, and automatic transfers will be applied.
In line with the government’s New Leap Fund (bad bank) initiative, Woori Bank will completely halt collection activities and waive all overdue interest accrued after delinquency for individuals and sole proprietors whose loans of 10 million won or less have been overdue for more than six years. Woori Savings Bank also plans to offer overdue interest reductions to customers in the bottom 30% of its credit ratings and to multiple debtors. The support program for delinquent borrowers is scheduled to be implemented earlier than planned, within the first quarter of next year, following related IT system upgrades.
Customers who have taken out high-interest loans from Woori Savings Bank, Woori Financial Capital, Woori Card, or other Woori Financial Group affiliates and are making repayments faithfully will now be able to refinance into lower-interest loans from Woori Bank. This “refinancing loan” will be available up to 20 million won, with interest rates also capped at a maximum of 7% per annum.
Woori Financial Group also plans to strengthen accessibility to inclusive finance. The group will build the inclusive finance platform “36.5°” within its integrated application “Woori WON Banking” by the second quarter of next year. Beginning in the first quarter, dedicated inclusive finance consultation channels will be established at Woori Bank’s customer center and at the branches and customer centers of all group affiliates, with specialized teams providing one-stop services from debt adjustment to tailored product guidance.
"Inclusive Finance Plan Worth 7 Trillion Won Over 5 Years Is Being Implemented Without Delay"
Meanwhile, Woori Financial Group stated that its five-year inclusive finance plan, totaling 7 trillion won-including 3.5 trillion won from the bank and 3 trillion won from the savings bank-announced as part of the “Future Mutual Growth Project” at the end of September, is being carried out without delay. As of the end of November, Woori Bank’s Sae Hope Hall Credit Loan reached 677.8 billion won, the largest among commercial banks, earning the bank the “Outstanding Institution for Supporting Inclusive Finance” award from the Financial Supervisory Service.
The group is also steadily expanding its government-linked initiatives. On November 14, Woori Bank signed a support agreement totaling 100 billion won to fund the “New Leap Loan,” a special loan for diligent repayers through the Credit Recovery Committee. This month, the bank contributed 49.6 billion won to the bad bank fund under the “New Leap Fund Credit Recovery Support” agreement, and from next year through 2027, it will provide a total of 97.6 billion won in guarantees-including 48 billion won to guarantee 400 billion won in mutual growth loans such as Sunshine Loan 119. To provide on-site, hands-on support for small business owners, the “Small Business Comprehensive Support Center,” which offers free start-up and operations consulting, added five new centers this year, bringing the total to 11, with another center set to open in Namdaemun Market in January next year.
Policies to support asset formation for small business owners and low-income individuals are also being actively pursued. In October, Woori Savings Bank launched “Woori Together Installment Savings,” offering up to 6.5% interest for socially disadvantaged groups, and “Woori Cheer Up Installment Savings” for small business owners in the Chungcheong region. Woori Bank also plans to offer up to 5% interest on the “Woori Boss Growth Installment Savings,” a product exclusively for small business owners, in the second quarter of next year.
Woori Financial Group is also taking active steps to reduce financial costs for vulnerable groups. On November 21, Woori Bank reduced interest rates by 0.3 percentage points for all new Sae Hope Hall Credit Loan customers with a credit rating of 7 or lower (based on external CB ratings). For customers who are making repayments faithfully, the bank applied additional interest rate reductions of up to 3.0 percentage points based on internal ratings. Woori Financial Group explained that approximately 130,000 low-credit and diligent repayment customers are expected to benefit from these interest rate reductions.
A Woori Bank official stated, "We will swiftly implement the announced plans so that low-credit and financially vulnerable individuals can experience the effects of financial support as soon as possible. All executives and employees are sincerely committed to the ‘Future Mutual Growth Project,’ which signifies our pursuit of sustainable growth for Woori Financial Group in partnership with the national economy."
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