Yoon Jong-won, CEO of Industrial Bank of Korea, Appointed Co-Chair of OECD Sustainable SME Finance Platform

Joint Research on Sustainable Financial Models for Green Transition of SMEs on the Platform
IBK Launches Sustainability-Linked Loans (SLL) and Begins Establishing Carbon Neutral Roadmap for Financial Assets

The photo shows Yoon Jong-won, President of IBK Industrial Bank, and Lamia Kamal-Chaoui, OECD Director, holding a meeting at the OECD International Forum held virtually on November 2 last year.

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Hwajeong] IBK Industrial Bank of Korea announced on the 24th that its President Yoon Jong-won has been appointed as co-chairman of the recently established "OECD Sustainable SME Finance Platform."

The platform aims to establish a sustainable SME finance model that induces the green transition of small and medium-sized enterprises through joint research by the OECD, SME finance banks from the UK and Canada, IBK Industrial Bank of Korea, and others.

The platform will have a government official recommended by the UK's BBB (British Business Bank) as the inaugural chairperson, and President Yoon will serve as co-chairman alongside Canada's BDC (Business Development Bank of Canada), participating in key decision-making and establishing the platform's operational system. Research results will be shared through an annual conference, a biannual steering committee, and quarterly seminars, with the first steering committee scheduled for the 21st of next month.

In this regard, at the OECD online forum held last November on green finance for SMEs, President Yoon participated as a representative of Asian banks and emphasized the role of international cooperation and finance for the green transition of SMEs. In the same month, during an OECD business trip, discussions were held on knowledge sharing in SME finance and the establishment of a platform for the green transition.

This year, IBK Industrial Bank of Korea established an ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) consulting team early in the year to support the green transition of SMEs and was the first in the financial sector to launch a "Sustainability-Linked Loan (SLL)" that provides incentives when companies achieve carbon neutrality goals. Recently, the bank has begun establishing a carbon neutrality roadmap for financial assets, which will serve as a standard for the green transition of SMEs, and plans to expand green finance by providing customized support considering the level of green transition.

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