Starting in April 2024, banks will begin operations 30 minutes later, while the proportion of weekend operations at flexible branches remains at only 10%. The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) is working to expand the operating hours and services of these flexible branches to reduce consumer inconvenience.
According to the FSS on the 15th, during the fifth meeting of the Financial Consumer Protection Advisory Committee, chaired by FSS Governor Lee Chan-jin on the 12th, seven consumer protection issues, including improvements to the operation of flexible branches, were discussed.
As of the end of September this year, there are 991 flexible branches across the country. Of these, 44.5% are located in government offices, and 38.5% feature high-functionality automated machines, while only 10.9% are near commercial and office areas. Among the flexible branches with staff, only 10.6% operate on weekends, and very few can handle general banking tasks.
The total number of bank branches nationwide decreased from 5,831 at the end of 2022 to 5,466 by the end of September this year, a reduction of 365 branches. With the planned delay of bank opening hours from 9 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. starting in April, concerns have arisen regarding increased consumer inconvenience. The FSS plans to collaborate with the Financial Services Commission and the banking sector to improve the operation of flexible branches.
Measures to prevent excessive debt among active-duty soldiers are also being developed. The amount of loans issued to active-duty soldiers by the top 30 registered lenders surged from 350 million won at the end of 2022 to 24.2 billion won by the end of last year. The FSS intends to limit general credit loans for active-duty soldiers within the year, while allowing secured loans for living expenses and medical costs, as well as emergency loans.
Additionally, guidance and refund measures for long-unused prepaid balances will be expanded to shopping and delivery platforms such as Naver Pay, Kakao Pay, and Toss. A plan to shorten the user notification period from one year to three months is also being pursued.
Furthermore, it has been confirmed that as of the end of June this year, there were 7,529 cases of Sunshine Loan bonds that had not been claimed for subrogation in the small financial sector, amounting to 22.3 billion won, prompting a decision to strengthen related inspections and notifications for delinquent borrowers.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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