Vice Chairman Kim Soyoung of the Financial Services Commission held a meeting with industry groups and related authorities on April 4 to go over the progress of interest refunds provided to small merchants by lenders in the nonbanking sector. Based on the number of applications received in the first quarter, some 160,000 small business owners are expected to receive about KRW120 billion in interest refunds between March 29 and April 12. To make sure that eligible borrowers are not missing out on this opportunity and are able to apply for interest refund support from their nonbank lenders, Vice Chairman Kim said that it is crucial to strengthen efforts to make sure that small business owners are aware about the availability of this program. Aside from this program, there are other assistance programs in operation for small merchants, including a low interest rate refinancing program offered by Korea Credit Guarantee Fund.