Seoul: South Korea's financial watchdog chief has again stressed the urgency of resolving loans extended to unstable construction projects in the country. Lee Bok-hyun, governor of the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), highlighted a noticeable deceleration in managing and restructuring bad loans linked to real estate development projects.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Lee noted that both domestic and international factors have contributed to the slowdown in restructuring efforts. During a meeting with officials from construction companies and financial institutions, he emphasized the need to expedite the process of restructuring these projects.
The financial watchdog has reported that approximately 5.2 trillion won (US$3.62 billion) in project financing has been written off or recapitalized as of mid-December. Financial companies are currently exposed to 12.5 trillion won in weak construction development projects, with plans to restructure or recapitalize 8.8 trillion won of that amount, according to the FSS.