Korean banks’ lending to corporates, SMEs rise in August

Loans extended to large corporations and SMEs both rose during the month.

Bank lending to the corporate sector grew by approximately $6.18b (KRW8.2t) in August, extending the $6.55b (KRW8.7t) rise recorded in July. 

Loans extended to large corporations grew by $2.1b (KRW2.9t) during the month, which the Bank of Korea (BOK) said was due to sustained demand for working capital and demand for funds to be used for facilities at blue-chip companies.

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Loans to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) also grew by over $3.92b (KRW5.2t) in August, higher than the $3.6b (KRW4.9t) loan growth reported in July.

This was reportedly thanks to banks’ efforts to expand their corporate financing, and demand for funds from SMEs, the BOK said in its latest monthly Financial Market Trend report.