Woori Bank Establishes Emergency Fund Support System for COVID-19

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyo-jin] Woori Bank announced on the 10th that it will operate a special dedicated review team to provide smooth financial support to individual business owners and small and medium-sized enterprises in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions who are experiencing management difficulties due to the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19).

The special dedicated review team will select priority support businesses for COVID-19 in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions and implement a 'rapid review support' system that notifies the review results within 2 business days for loan applications from these companies. Woori Bank selected about 6,000 individual business owners and about 1,100 small and medium-sized corporations located in Daegu and Gyeongbuk as eligible businesses.

Woori Bank will temporarily grant additional loan approval authority to branch managers located in Daegu and Gyeongbuk. In particular, for sectors directly experiencing sales declines such as the food service and lodging industries, quick loan support will be made possible, and the responsible branch managers and headquarters review officers will visit companies facing difficulties to provide financial consulting support.

Also, individual business owners and individual customers who find it difficult to visit branches due to COVID-19 confirmed diagnosis or self-quarantine can extend loans through phone calls with the branch. For corporate businesses, loan extensions by proxy representatives are also possible.

Considering the recovery period from damages, support for interest-free extensions and installment repayment deferrals will also be provided. For customers who inevitably delayed loan interest payments due to confirmed COVID-19 diagnosis, deletion of delinquency information and reduction of delinquency interest are also possible.

A Woori Bank official said, "We will provide practical financial support for businesses struggling due to COVID-19," and added, "We hope this program will help the rapid normalization of companies in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions."

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