Jeonbuk Bank has become the first bank in South Korea to offer loans in Korean won secured by Bitcoin. The loans are aimed at corporate clients to support their business operations, and the bank does not directly hold the virtual assets.
According to the financial sector on October 12, JB Financial Group's Jeonbuk Bank has begun offering Bitcoin-linked loans in Korean won to corporate clients. The loans are limited to Bitcoin as collateral, and the funds can only be used for business operational expenses.
The Bitcoin provided as collateral will be stored by a specialized custody and management firm. In the event of default or other reasons for executing the collateral, the bank will not directly take possession of the virtual assets but will follow legal procedures, such as court orders for sale, to liquidate the assets and recover the loan.
Jeonbuk Bank selected Bitcoin as collateral due to its market size and liquidity. The bank conducted its own stress tests based on scenarios of significant price drops and established a valuation system using prices from multiple global exchanges and market volatility indicators.
A representative from Jeonbuk Bank stated, "This loan is an example of services provided within the scope of lending operations permitted under banking law," adding, "It has not been designated as a separate innovative financial service."
Additionally, Jeonbuk Bank announced the launch of a service on its mobile financial platform, Sok Bank, that provides market information from the five largest digital asset exchanges in South Korea. This follows a data provision agreement with Bonanza Lab, a digital asset data specialist.
Customers can access digital asset market trends, rankings by exchange, real-time news, and detailed information on specific assets through the 'virtual asset market information' menu on Sok Bank. Jeonbuk Bank plans to expand its collaboration into research and analysis content in the future.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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