1% Ultra-Low Interest Loan of 10 Million KRW for Low-Credit Small Business Owners, Applications Open Starting Tomorrow

Online Applications Open from 9 AM
10-Day System Implemented to Distribute Access Traffic

Asia Economy DB=Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced that from 9 a.m. on the 3rd, applications will be accepted online for the "Hope Loan," which provides up to 10 million KRW at an ultra-low interest rate of 1% to low-credit small business owners.

The support targets are small business owners who received the small business quarantine support fund (1 million KRW) after December 27 of last year and have low credit (credit score of 744 or below according to NICE Information Service, or grade 6 or below under the old system). A total of 140,000 businesses will be supplied with 1.4 trillion KRW.

Small business owners currently holding policy loan balances can apply regardless of the type or amount of their existing loans. However, those who have received the special recovery loan (1% interest rate, up to 20 million KRW) implemented from November 29 last year through this year cannot apply for overlapping support.

Additionally, those with tax delinquencies, overdue payments to financial institutions, businesses that are closed or suspended, or those who are not small business owners are excluded from support. The Hope Loan will be provided as a direct loan from the Small Enterprise and Market Service, with a loan period of 5 years (2 years grace period, 3 years installment repayment).

Self-employed participants at the "Self-Employed General Rally" held at Gwanghwamun Citizen Open Square in Jongno-gu, Seoul, are urging the suspension of business restrictions and the quarantine pass system, as well as compensation for losses. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

Applications will be accepted online from 9 a.m. on the 3rd via the Small Business Policy Fund website. To distribute simultaneous access, a 10-day system based on the last digit of the representative’s resident registration number birth year will be implemented from the 3rd to the 12th.

For example, those whose birth year ends in 3 can apply on the 3rd, those ending in 8 on the 8th, and those ending in 9 on the 9th. From the 13th onward, applications can be submitted regardless of the birth year’s last digit.

During the 10-day system period, application hours are from 9 a.m. to midnight daily. After the 10-day system ends, applications will be accepted 24 hours from 9 a.m.

For more details, check the announcement on the website or contact the dedicated call center, the Small and Medium Business Integrated Call Center, or one of the 70 regional centers of the Small Enterprise and Market Service.

Meanwhile, financial support plans for small business owners with medium or higher credit affected by COVID-19, such as special guarantees from regional credit guarantee foundations, will be separately announced and implemented within this month.

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