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Parliament passes bill to double insured amount of bank savings

Published: 29 Dec. 2024, 18:25 Updated: 29 Dec. 2024, 19:18

CHO YONG-JUN
[email protected]

The National Assembly on Friday passed a bill to double the maximum amount of savings deposited in banks protected by the government. [YONHAP]

A bill to double the maximum amount of savings deposited in banks protected by the government was passed by the National Assembly on Friday.

Under the updated Depositor Protection Act, the protection now covers total bank deposits of up to 100 million won ($67,850) per bank for each consumer, twice the 50 million won protected by the act since 2001.

The law offers restitution up to the maximum amount when a financial institution lacks the liquidity to cover all deposits, such as bankruptcy.

The maximum protection of 100 million won covers the savings at each bank a depositor is a customer of.

The bill was supported by 184 out of 184 lawmakers present in the 300-member National Assembly on Friday, which also passed 38 other bills, including updates to the Act on Registration of Credit Business and Protection of Finance Users.

The motion follows criticism that the increased GDP per capita and the rise in savings deposited at banks do not reflect the protection provided by the government, while it was also pointed out that the ceiling was lower than that of other major countries around the world. The European Union protects up to 100,000 euro ($104,280) per depositor at each financial institution.

The revision will be enforced “within a year of promulgation, considering the circumstances of the financial market,” according to the financial authorities.

BY CHO YONG-JUN [[email protected]]