Deputy Minister Koo Yoon-cheol Urges Investment Institutions to Strive to Minimize COVID-19 Economic Impact

On the 21st, Government-Funded Institutions Hold Meeting

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] Koo Yoon-cheol, Vice Minister of Strategy and Finance, held a meeting with government-invested institutions on the 21st and urged, "We ask the invested institutions to also work together to minimize the impact of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on our economy."

On the same day, Vice Minister Koo presided over a meeting at the Government Seoul Office attended by deputy heads of 22 out of 39 government-invested institutions and said, "Concerns about the downside risks to the economy have been growing recently due to COVID-19." He emphasized, "To wisely overcome the economic ripple effects of this situation and firmly establish momentum for economic recovery, the active role and responsibility of not only government finances but also government-invested institutions are more important than ever." The attendees discussed this year's government dividend policy, last year's policy achievements, and presentations of exemplary institutions.

At the meeting, Vice Minister Koo evaluated, "Last year, by adjusting dividends amounting to 1.5 trillion won (from 10 institutions) to secure investment funds, we expanded financial support for small business owners and self-employed individuals, and helped stabilize housing for low-income citizens through programs such as the Bogeumjari Loan," and encouraged institutions like the Korea Housing Finance Corporation that achieved excellent performance.

He then stressed three principles regarding this year's dividend policy: ▲ supporting invested institutions in carrying out major national policy tasks such as economic policy directions or responding to unexpected economic changes by providing necessary funding, ▲ supporting capital expansion to maintain the financial soundness of invested institutions, and ▲ reflecting dividend payments based on evaluations of last year's dividend performance and policy achievements.

In particular, he stated, "This year, we plan to actively support the necessary funds to minimize the negative impact of the recent COVID-19 situation," and added, "To maintain financial soundness, we will establish objective judgment criteria for the need for appropriate capital expansion (such as BIS ratio, guarantee multiples), conduct in-depth analyses of each institution's financial status, and for institutions with large capital expansion needs, consider dividend reductions and, if necessary, link them with additional investments."

The Ministry of Strategy and Finance plans to decide on this year's government dividends within this month, taking into account the matters discussed at the meeting.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.