Saemaul Geumgo to offer W1.1tr in special guaranteed loans for social enterprises, small businesses

Saemaul Geumgo announced Monday it will sharply expand inclusive finance by extending 1.1 trillion won ($799 million) in loans to social solidarity economy organizations — including social enterprises — as well as local small-business owners.

The Saemaul Geumgo Central Association will officially launch a special guaranteed loan product targeting social solidarity economy organizations on Tuesday. The program is backed by a 100 billion won fund that the central association will contribute at a rate of 20 billion won per year over five years from 2026 to 2030. Social solidarity economy organizations are entities that carry out economic activities to generate social value, including social enterprises, cooperatives, community businesses, self-reliance enterprises and consumer cooperatives.

Under the structure, the Korea Credit Guarantee Foundation will issue guarantee certificates backed by the central association's contributions, enabling Saemaul Geumgo branches nationwide to use those certificates as collateral to extend a total of 1.1 trillion won in loans — a guarantee multiplier of roughly 11 times — while the government and other parties provide interest-rate subsidies.

The program raises the Korea Credit Guarantee Foundation's per-loan guarantee coverage to as high as 100 percent, reducing the burden on Saemaul Geumgo as the lending institution and allowing for smoother product delivery.

Saemaul Geumgo plans to gradually expand the scope of the special guarantee product beyond social solidarity economy organizations to cover local small-business owners, vulnerable groups and borrowers outside the Greater Seoul area.

The special guaranteed loan is part of an inclusive finance expansion program outlined in "Saemaul Geumgo Vision 2030," announced Feb. 26.

With more than 3,100 branches nationwide, Saemaul Geumgo's large-scale funding push for social solidarity economy organizations is expected to help close financial blind spots and narrow the gap in financial access between the Greater Seoul area and the rest of the country.

In line with Vision 2030, Saemaul Geumgo is restructuring its loan portfolio with the goal of raising the share of retail finance to at least 80 percent by 2030.

Beyond the new special guaranteed loan product, the organization actively handles policy-backed loans such as Haetsal-ron and is pursuing a project to build an alternative credit-scoring system to extend financial access to vulnerable groups and thin-file borrowers.

"The launch of this special guaranteed loan product is a major step that embodies Saemaul Geumgo's own brand of inclusive finance," a Saemaul Geumgo Central Association official said. "We will become a more trusted financial cooperative by actively supporting the financially underserved and strengthening retail finance."