Busan Bank launches W40b mutual-growth fund loan with HUG

BNK Busan Bank said Thursday it will launch a 40 billion won ($29.4 million) regional cooperation "mutual-growth fund loan" in partnership with the Korea Housing and Urban Guarantee Corporation (HUG) to ease the financial burden on small and medium-sized enterprises in the Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang region and stimulate the local economy, effective Thursday.

The loan program is designed to supply capital to regional small and medium-sized enterprises, lower their financing costs and support stable management and growth.

Eligible borrowers are small and medium-sized enterprises in the Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang region that have been in operation for at least two years — specifically those in housing construction, technology-based startups, youth-led businesses, AI companies and marine and fisheries businesses. Qualifying companies will receive an interest rate discount of up to 1.7 percentage points.

The loan limit per company is up to 500 million won, while construction firms may borrow up to 700 million won. Of the total fund, 5 billion won has been set aside as a priority allocation for construction companies to help ease the financial burden on the regional housing construction sector.

Ahead of the product launch, Busan Bank and HUG signed an MOU on Tuesday to cooperate on financial support for regional businesses and expand their mutual-growth partnership.