Sandankong and Industrial Bank Join Hands to Jointly Support ESG Companies

200 Billion KRW 'Donghaeng Fund' Established to Jointly Support Regional Economic Revitalization

Korea Industrial Complex Corporation Headquarters

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Cheol-hyun] Korea Industrial Complex Corporation (Chairman Kim Jeong-hwan, hereinafter referred to as KICO) announced on the 11th that it has recently signed the '3rd ESG Win-Win Growth Cooperation Agreement' with IBK Industrial Bank of Korea (President Yoon Jong-won, hereinafter referred to as IBK) to support companies for revitalizing the local economy. This agreement involves KICO and IBK creating a 'Companion Fund' of approximately 20 billion KRW to provide win-win growth cooperative loans to small and medium-sized enterprises in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions that have adopted ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management.

The win-win growth cooperative loan limit is up to 500 million KRW, and beneficiary companies automatically receive a 1.75% reduction in loan interest rates, with an additional reduction of up to 1.4% depending on their credit rating. The support targets include ESG management companies located in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions, companies possessing excellent green technologies, job-creating companies, and startups.

Since 2014, KICO and IBK have provided low-interest loans totaling 104.2 billion KRW to about 190 companies, including global leading companies that are technology-innovative small and medium-sized enterprises in industrial complexes and companies affected by COVID-19. With this agreement, both organizations plan to leverage their specialized capabilities to offer ESG professional consulting and customized support projects to promote ESG management among small and medium-sized enterprises in industrial complexes and to revitalize the local economy led by the private sector.

Kim Jeong-hwan, Chairman of Korea Industrial Complex Corporation, said, "Through the operation of the Companion Fund promoted together with IBK, we expect not only to strengthen the competitiveness of companies that have introduced ESG management in industrial complexes but also to greatly contribute to revitalizing the local economy." He added, "In the future, we plan to continuously discover and promote various cooperative projects that can support and expand the introduction of ESG management in industrial complexes nationwide, including the Daegu and Gyeongbuk regions."

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