Yoon Criticizes 'Bank Money Festival': "People's Pain Is Great... Benefits of Win-Win Finance Must Be Returned" (Comprehensive)

Presiding over the Chief Secretary Meeting on the 13th, Emphasizing the "Public Goods Nature of Banks"
President Yoon: "We Must Prevent Public Discomfort from Money Celebrations"

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] President Yoon Suk-yeol on the 13th stated, "The high interest rates at banks are causing great hardship for the people," and instructed the Financial Services Commission to prepare related measures. This action comes in response to criticism that while ordinary citizens and self-employed individuals are struggling due to high interest rates, banks are enjoying record-breaking profits, described as a 'money feast.'

On the same day, President Yoon presided over a senior secretaries meeting at the Yongsan Presidential Office and urged, "Since banks have a public goods nature, their profits should be considered to benefit those in difficulty, such as the people, self-employed, and small business owners, through so-called win-win financial benefits."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In particular, President Yoon said, "It is appropriate to use the funds to build strong reserves in preparation for future financial market instability," and requested that the 'money feast' of banks should not create a sense of discord among the people. Lee Do-woon, spokesperson for the Presidential Office, explained to reporters at the Presidential Office in the afternoon that the win-win finance refers to "the intention to create a space where the people, self-employed, and small business owners in difficulty can breathe in the financial sector."

Earlier, during the Financial Services Commission briefing last month, President Yoon emphasized, "Banks are a public goods system more important than national defense." Referring to 'stewardship,' he conveyed detailed guidelines that, although companies without owners and with dispersed ownership have contributed to the public interest and government management intervention is not appropriate, efforts must be made together to establish fair and transparent governance.

Emphasizing the transparency and soundness of the governance of ownerless financial holding companies, President Yoon stated, "That is why they operate under a licensing system rather than free establishment, and we have experience of injecting massive public funds into banks during past crises to carry out restructuring. Therefore, fair and transparent governance of banks is crucial."

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