"Nearest Bank 27km Away...Concerns Over Financial Exclusion Among Elderly in Highly Aging Areas"

Financial Yeon "Policy Supplement Needed Including Impact Assessment of Closure"

Concerns have been raised that financial exclusion among the elderly may worsen in regions with severe aging populations.

Bank counter. Photo by Yonhap News

On the 22nd, the Korea Institute of Finance analyzed in its report titled "Analysis and Implications of Domestic Bank Branch Distribution" that "there are regional disparities in the minimum distance consumers must travel to use bank branches."

By region, Seoul, Busan, and Daejeon have distances under 1 km, but many other regions exceed 20 km. In particular, Gangwon, Jeonnam, and Gyeongbuk reached up to 27 km.

Among the top 30 locations with the longest travel distances to use branches, most exceed 20 km and are mostly small and medium-sized cities or county-level areas in the provinces.

The Korea Institute of Finance stated, "The higher the level of regional aging, the lower the accessibility to bank branches," adding, "Financial exclusion of the elderly, who are the most vulnerable to digitalization and may rely heavily on physical branches, is likely to continue worsening."

It also added, "Policy measures such as evaluating the impact of branch closures reflecting changes in the physical travel distances of financial consumers within regions and improving related procedures seem necessary."

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