FSC Vice Chairman Kim So-young presided over a meeting with the Financial Supervisory Service and relevant financial industry groups on June 8 to review current status of the efforts to soft-land the loan maturity extension and payment deferment program. The maturity extension and payment deferment program was introduced in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic to support SMEs and small merchants experiencing temporary liquidity problems. Since it was first launched in April 2020, the availability of support program was extended every six months. Currently, it is available under the measures to soft-land loan maturity extension and payment deferment for self-employed and SMEs, the fifth such six-month extension plan announced in September 2022. In accordance with the measures announced in last September, maturity extension is available for three years (until September 2025) and payment deferment is available until September 2028 according to individual payment plans submitted by borrowers. Specific terms of their payment plans (interest-only period, installment payment plan, etc.) are drawn up in consultation with each financial institution.
Some of the key statistics of the maturity extension and payment deferment program as of the end of March 2023 are as follows. Compared to the end of September 2022, the amount of loan balance and the number of borrowers receiving support declined by about KRW15 trillion and 46,000, respectively, as shown in the table below. This shows a smooth landing of the support program as borrowers are recovering payment capabilities due to improving business conditions, availability of low interest rate refinancing loans, debt adjustment support and so on.
At the meeting, Vice Chairman Kim So-young said that authorities will work to ensure a soft-landing of the support program and continue to operate a help center at the FSS to make sure that borrowers can seek consultation on their payment plans, debt adjustment and the availability of other support measures.
* Please refer to the attached file for details.