SK-KB Kookmin Bank Supports Low-Interest Loans for ESG Outstanding Partners

SK Group and KB Kookmin Bank will provide low-interest loans worth up to 1 trillion KRW to outstanding ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) partner companies.

On the 19th, the two companies announced on the 20th that they signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to expand ESG management among SK Group’s partner companies, with Cho Kyung-mok, Chairman of the SV Committee of SK Supex Council, and Lee Jae-geun, President of KB Kookmin Bank, participating at the SK Seorin Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul.

Jogyungmok, Chairman of the SV Committee of SK Supex Council (left), and Lee Jaegun, President of KB Kookmin Bank, are posing for a commemorative photo after signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to expand ESG management among SK Group partner companies at the SK Seorin Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 19th.

SK Group conducted ESG assessments for a total of about 1,100 partner companies this year through its self-developed 'Click ESG' program, and will support low-interest loans with interest rate reductions of 0.9 to 1.4 percentage points for partner companies that received excellent ratings.

For ESG outstanding partners with eco-friendly technological capabilities in areas such as energy storage (lithium-ion batteries, battery management systems, etc.), environmental protection (plastic upcycling, wastewater treatment, etc.), and environmental improvement (air pollution control, eco-friendly air conditioning systems, etc.), KB will provide preferential loans for promising growth companies with interest rate reductions of up to 2.7 percentage points.

The two companies will also provide ESG consulting to improve the ESG management level of SK’s partner companies and assist in recruiting excellent talent through events such as the 'KB Good Job Recruitment Fair' scheduled for October.

Chairman Cho Kyung-mok said, "I hope this win-win cooperation program will be of practical help in expanding ESG management and achieving mutual growth for small and medium-sized partner companies."

President Lee Jae-geun said, "We will support small and medium-sized enterprises to strengthen their ESG competitiveness and grow on the global stage by expanding financial benefits for eco-friendly outstanding companies and ESG consulting services."

Meanwhile, since March, SK has been implementing preferential interest rate loans for ESG outstanding partner companies in cooperation with Shinhan Bank. So far, loans worth 4.2 billion KRW have been executed with an average interest rate reduction of 2.26 percentage points for 10 partner companies.

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