KDB Industrial Bank Provides 40 Billion KRW Support to 3 COVID-Hit LCCs "Comprehensive Support Activities"

Rapid Promotion of Additional LCC Support
Participation in the Good Landlord Movement
Emergency Living Expense Donations for Daegu and Gyeongbuk

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo Gang-wook] The Korea Development Bank (KDB) has prepared all available support measures for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-sized companies affected by COVID-19 and has actively provided assistance.

According to the financial sector response plan related to the novel coronavirus announced by the government on the 7th of last month, KDB announced on the 17th that it has supported a total of 326.4 billion KRW as of the 13th, including new working capital loans, extensions of existing loan terms, and export-import financing for affected companies.

In addition, to alleviate the burden on companies exposed to worsening domestic and international economic conditions and to revitalize the national economy, KDB has actively utilized low-interest products such as the facility investment boom-up program and special operating funds to enhance economic vitality, supplying a total of 10.6 trillion KRW in funds through the 13th of this year. This represents a 34.2% increase compared to the same period last year.

KDB increased the special on-lending limit for export companies by 200 billion KRW. In particular, from the 1st of next month, it plans to handle an additional 200 billion KRW scale of 'COVID-19 Affected Companies Support Special On-Lending' targeting SMEs located in severely affected areas such as Daegu or those in industries hit by COVID-19, including retail and transportation. On-lending refers to the method of providing funds through intermediary financial institutions such as commercial banks.

Furthermore, regarding the government's announcement on the 17th of last month to provide up to 300 billion KRW in financial support to low-cost carriers (LCCs), KDB approved an emergency operating fund of 6 billion KRW without collateral for T'way Air. It also completed support of 20 billion KRW and 14 billion KRW respectively for Air Seoul and Air Busan through Asiana Airlines. Additional support and funding requests for other LCC companies will be reviewed and provided as quickly as possible.

Alongside financial support, KDB has joined the 'Good Landlord Movement,' offering a 35% reduction in monthly rent for six months to SME tenants in self-owned stores, promoting the expansion of Onnuri gift certificate purchases to support small business owners, and reducing ATM fees for customers in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions, thereby expanding social contribution activities.

Additionally, KDB donated 100 million KRW last month to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and provide relief, and plans to donate 50 million KRW in emergency living expenses (200,000 KRW per household) through the purchase of local gift certificates for low-income families in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions.

Moreover, to prevent employee infections and maintain continuity of banking operations, KDB established an 'Emergency Response Committee' from the early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak to share phased response situations with all employees. Some deputy governors have been assigned to work remotely at the Hanam Data Center (Digital Square), and in the event of the worst-case scenario such as branch closures, 25% of employees have been allowed to work from home to secure minimum operational personnel, minimizing operational risks.

Along with this, KDB has prepared an emergency business center (BCP Center) within the Bucheon branch capable of accommodating 170 people to perform 39 essential tasks such as fund settlement and export-import financing. It has also manualized detailed response plans for branch closures, designating alternative branches and personnel in preparation for branch shutdowns.

A KDB official emphasized, "In addition to these support measures, we have established action plans for various economic scenarios and are preparing large-scale liquidity support products (including preferential interest rates and simplified screening processes) to help affected companies quickly normalize their business activities. As a policy financial institution, we will continue to explore all possible measures and make sustained efforts to overcome the national disaster of COVID-19."

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