Shinhan Bank on Jan. 29 is named both an outstanding institution and an outstanding case at the 7th Awards Ceremony for Best Cases in Mutual Growth and Cooperation New Financial Products hosted by the Financial Supervisory Service.

In the evaluation, Shinhan Bank is named an outstanding institution for its Shinhan Youth Financial Support Package, a comprehensive support programme for young people from future generations. It is also selected as an outstanding case for its Shinhan Ttaenggyeoyo interest-subsidy loan, a public-private partnership financial product for local small merchants, taking two awards.

The Shinhan Youth Financial Support Package supports young people struggling with student loans and housing cost burdens. So far it has provided cumulative support worth 8.9 billion won for student loan repayments and household utility bills to about 100,000 young customers.

Specifically, the programme includes Shinhan Scholarship Savings, which provides repayment support funds when young people with student loans complete their savings; credit recovery support linked to the Korea Student Aid Foundation to help diligent young borrowers restart; and a utility bill support programme tied to jeonse and monthly rent loans to reduce fixed-cost burdens for young people.

The Shinhan Ttaenggyeoyo interest-subsidy loan, selected as an outstanding case, is a public-private partnership financial product that combines Shinhan Bank’s special contribution fund with local governments’ interest support to ease financial burdens for local small merchants. It receives high marks for helping reduce merchants’ financing costs through cooperation with local governments while contributing to revitalising local commercial districts.

It also applies an alternative credit evaluation model using non-financial data from the Ttaenggyeoyo platform to improve access to finance. So far, loans totalling 48.3 billion won have been extended, it said.

Shinhan Bank has continued to 추진 various forms of inclusive finance, including the COVID-19 small merchants support loan, the Family Mutual Growth Savings, and the Yellow Umbrella Small Merchants Mutual Growth Support Package. It said these consistent efforts are recognised with awards for 4 consecutive years, including this award.

A Shinhan Bank official said, "It is meaningful that the results of practising inclusive finance as a sustainable financial solution, not a one-off policy, have led to an important evaluation." The official added, "We will continue inclusive finance that faithfully fulfils finance’s social responsibility and enables customers and society to grow together."