Gwangju Bank Specially Contributes 500 Million Won to Support Neighborhood Business Finance

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Park Jin-hyung] Gwangju Bank announced that it will provide a special contribution of 500 million KRW for small business owners in the alley markets of the Gwangju area, signing the ‘2022 4th 3-No Alley Market Special Guarantee Financial Support Business Agreement’ with Gwangju Metropolitan City and Gwangju Credit Guarantee Foundation, and will offer the ‘Alley Market Special Guarantee Loan.’

The Alley Market Special Guarantee Agreement is a project promoted since 2012 by Gwangju Metropolitan City, financial institutions including Gwangju Bank, and the Gwangju Credit Guarantee Foundation. Under this agreement, Gwangju Bank will make a special contribution of 500 million KRW and provide a special guarantee of 14.7 billion KRW to local small business owners facing financial difficulties.

The Gwangju Metropolitan City ‘4th 3-No (No Collateral, No Interest, No Guarantee Fee) Alley Market Special Guarantee Loan’ supports small business owners in alley markets and traditional markets across 58 industries such as retail and food service within the region, providing up to 25 million KRW per business. The loan period is up to 5 years, and applications can be made at any Gwangju Bank branch.

Borrowers can choose between variable and fixed interest rates. Gwangju Metropolitan City compensates for the 2.5% interest rate difference, applying a reduction at the time of loan issuance. The remaining interest paid by customers is fully supported by Gwangju Metropolitan City, which refunds it quarterly for one year to the customers’ interest payment accounts in the following month.

Vice President Cho Hyun-gi said, “We will provide timely financial support to small enterprises and small business owners in the region who are experiencing financial difficulties due to the prolonged COVID-19 economic downturn. As a representative bank of Gwangju and Jeonnam, we will fulfill our mission to contribute to the revitalization of the local economy and practice coexistence and partnership with the community.”

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