[Reporter’s Notebook] Tempted by 30,000 KRW, You Might End Up with More Than You Bargained For

Difficult-to-Lift Financial Transaction Limit Accounts
Essential Points to Check Before Signing Up

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Sun-mi]"Customers opening a deposit and withdrawal account for the first time without an existing account will receive a 30,000 KRW congratulatory deposit."

With an expected market capitalization reaching 70 trillion KRW, LG Energy Solution is considered a ‘hot topic’ in the initial public offering (IPO) market, and KB Kookmin Bank’s ‘KB Able Plus Account’ has emerged as a trendy item. The advantage of being able to trade stocks with a bank deposit and withdrawal account has attracted a new customer base. Riding this momentum, Kookmin Bank emphasized a 250% preferential limit during the IPO subscription and launched an event offering a ‘30,000 KRW congratulatory deposit’ to customers who open an account.

The prediction was accurate. In a reality where events offering coffee coupons require at least a savings account that locks money, an event giving 30,000 KRW just for opening an account was highly effective. On internet stock communities, posts flooded in saying it is beneficial to sign up for this account ahead of the IPO subscription. Some expressed regret, saying they already have a Kookmin Bank account and thus are not ‘new customers’ eligible for the congratulatory deposit.

But do consumers realize that the ‘financial transaction limit account’ restricts daily transfer limits to 300,000 KRW on automated machines and internet (phone) banking?

To receive multiple shares of LG Energy Solution, whose expected offering price range is 257,000 to 300,000 KRW per share, the subscription deposit amount inevitably grows. However, if one tries to transfer the refunded deposit to another account after completing the subscription, they may be blocked at 300,000 KRW. Considering many people use overdraft accounts to borrow funds for IPO subscriptions and then repay loans with refunded deposits, many could find their money locked in the financial transaction limit account.

Of course, bank branches can discretionarily lift the limit on these accounts. For example, customers must prove that card payments from affiliated companies have been deducted from the newly issued account for over three months or show stock trading frequency and volume under conditions unknown to the customer. It is difficult to lift the account limit.

Since it is unreasonable to blame financial authorities operating the ‘financial transaction limit account’ system to prevent voice phishing damage for the bank’s aggressive marketing offering many benefits to new customers, the responsibility falls entirely on the customers.

To reduce harm, product precautions densely written in fine print should be made easier for customers to understand, flexible methods to lift the limit account should be considered, or marketing for limit accounts should be restrained. The bank previously lifted limits non-face-to-face considering customer fund sizes to resolve customer inconvenience related to refund transfers during the KakaoBank IPO subscription, so it may consider lifting limits this time as well.

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