147세 상환 약정의 그늘, 벼랑 끝에 선 소상공인 금융안전망의 민낯 > K-wave Trends

The reality of poor management at regional credit guarantee foundations revealed by the government audit is truly shocking. Some regional foundations signed nonsensical agreements extending debt repayment periods to 88 years, effectively requiring repayment until the age of 147, and numerous plans for repayment beyond the age of 100—far exceeding life expectancy—were also uncovered. This is the result of a lax management system that ignores reasonable recovery procedures under the pretext of helping debtors recover, operating on the belief that anything is possible with the approval of a superior. Furthermore, it was confirmed that due to negligence in guarantee termination tasks, over 1.9 trillion won in uncancelled guarantees had been left unattended. These uncancelled guarantees go beyond simple administrative omissions; they distort overall guarantee capacity and exacerbate the imbalance in resource allocation between metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas, dragging the credibility of policy finance to the bottom.

Behind this poor management lies the harsh reality of the financial landscape for small business owners. For self-employed individuals facing the threat of bankruptcy due to the triple whammy of high inflation, high interest rates, and stagnant domestic demand, regional credit guarantee foundations are effectively their last resort and lifeline. However, as the economic downturn has persisted, leading to a surge in guarantee defaults and subrogation payments, these foundations have reached a breaking point. In the field, there is suffering between the pressure to increase guarantee supply and the realistic wall of poor management. As the number of those needing guarantees increases exponentially while the resources to support them remain woefully insufficient, anxiety in the field has reached its peak.

Feeling the crisis, the heads of regional credit guarantee foundations nationwide recently established a 'Council of Chairpersons' and played the hardline card of collective response. They are strongly urging the government and the National Assembly to include re-guarantee budgets in supplementary budgets and are demanding institutional improvements to expand guarantee supply capacity. With less than half of the re-guarantee budget requested by the central association last year actually being allocated, regional foundations are facing the realistic fear of disruptions in guarantee supply. The common analysis in the field is that if resources are not replenished in time, it will lead to the cutting off of funding for small business owners, potentially triggering a chain reaction of collapse in local economies.

The issue of equity between guarantee institutions is also one of the core agendas of this council. Currently, the statutory contribution rate of financial companies to regional credit guarantee foundations is at the 0.05% level, which is significantly lower than that of the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund (0.225%) or the Korea Technology Finance Corporation (0.135%). Even though regional foundations have surpassed the Korea Technology Finance Corporation in terms of guarantee balance, their contribution base remains in a weak structure. This structural discrimination acts as a factor that hinders the sustainability of policy finance. Therefore, it is urgent to move beyond simply receiving budget support and establish a reasonable contribution rate system commensurate with the scale of guarantee supply to build a stable resource procurement structure.

Meanwhile, regional credit guarantee foundations have expressed their will to pursue self-rescue measures, such as strengthening internal risk management, alongside demands for external support. They are pledging efforts to enhance financial soundness by expanding the application range of partial guarantee ratios and reorganizing unrealistic maturity structures to focus on installment repayments. This is not merely a measure to avoid the reprimands of an audit, but an essential process to keep the financial safety net for small business owners more robust. It is time to move away from the rigid decision-making structure centered on the central association and evolve into a flexible system where regional foundations across the country can act as 'one team' and directly reflect the voices of the field in policy.