President Ham Young-ju of KEB Hana Bank.

KEB Hana Bank has joined the one of government’s core policies to create jobs through “productive finance” and “income-led” economic growth. Its plan established in March calls for providing 15 trillion won in loans by 2020.

The loans will go to four major areas of the economy, including startups and SMEs, to companies developing new technologies, including the SMEs with great potential, as well as startups and other firms that will lead the 4th Industrial Revolution.

The bank plans to release 120 billion won in loans to SME venture startups. Another billion won to go will be diverted to direct investments until 2020, bringing the total to around 600 billion won. The bank will set up a special team to handle the fund so that investments in venture startups would be made as targeted.

The bank will fund more than 9 trillion won to the area that will help SMEs with technologies grow through 2020 and will also set up a team in charge of SMEs with technologies with great potential for growth.

The bank will hire a number of experts to run the team. The bank will also provide some 4 trillion won to new firms and firms to lead the 4th Industrial Revolution by 2020.

 fund for 1.5 trillion won for the firms to create jobs, such as startups at a favorable interest rate, along with consulting services as part of its support to the government policies to create jobs.

In addition, the bank will directly invest in private projects to support social business firms, invest a total of 3.5 trillion won in the business firms with their plants located in the industrial complexes around the country.

The bank will continue to provide support to small firms suffering from the minimum wage requirement so that they would be able to share social contribution based on humanity to do in full their corporate social responsibility.

In August, the bank signed with Korea Venture Investment to spur civilian led venture investment and growth of SME and venture business firms to create jobs. Under the agreement, the bank and the Korea Venture Investment will jointly invest 110 billion won to eventually build a fund totaling 300 billion won including investments in the fund made by civilian investors.

The fund will be funneled to affiliates to be created for the purpose of helping the growth of the Unicon enterprises in the next four years from September.

The bank will continue to provide funds to the firms created with the funds provided by the firms that got the financial support from the fund created by the bank under the agreement signed with Korea Venture Investment.

The firms that got the funding support from Korea Venture Investment will be included in the firms that the bank will provide support based on the funding support applications made at its branches, along with consultations.

President Ham Young-joo said the bank has decided to invest 100 billion won for the first time for a nationwide commercial bank to support venture firms, the basic structure for reform growth for business firms and create job.

The fund is expected to be expanded to around 300 billion won including the funds to be invested by the civilian sector investors in the fund and the bank will provide further funds in low-interest loans totaling some 1 trillion won so that the venture firms would be able to overcome the death valley to create a successful social business base.

A model holds an ad for a special fund for 15 tln won set up by KEB Hana Bank earmarked for startups SMEs with great potential technologies and firms to develop technologies in the 4th Industrial Revolution. (Photos: KEB Hana Bank)