Gwangju City Supports Repayment Deferral for 'Small Business Special Guarantee'

1-Year Term Extension... Applications Accepted from the 18th
Relief for Over 13,000 Cases and 270 Billion Won Burden

Gwangju City Hall building exterior.

Gwangju City announced on the 17th that it will implement the "Special Guarantee Loan Repayment Deferral Support Project" to stabilize the management of local small business owners. The program extends the grace period and principal repayment schedule by one year, and applications can be made by visiting the financial institution where the loan was received starting from the 18th.

This measure aims to ease the burden of loan repayment by postponing the debt repayment period, as small business owners face difficulties in repaying the principal due to decreased sales caused by high inflation and high interest rates.

The support targets small business owners who received special guarantee loans from April 1, 2020, to 2024, and is conducted through Gwangju Bank, Shinhan Bank, NongHyup Bank, Hana Bank, Kookmin Bank, and Woori Bank, which handled the existing loans. Including last month's special guarantee loans, the total amounts to 12,894 cases (264.9 billion KRW). However, those who received repayment deferral for special guarantee loans in October 2023 are excluded.

Joo Jae-hee, Director of the Economic Startup Bureau of Gwangju City, said, "There have been many voices from the field that small business owners are struggling to repay special guarantee loans due to the economic downturn," and added, "We hope this project will help stabilize the management of small business owners."

Meanwhile, Gwangju City's Small Business Special Guarantee Project is a program that provides low-interest management fund loans and one year of interest support to small business owners facing management crises due to high interest rates, currently operating on a scale of 150 billion KRW.

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