Lender limbo: Surge in self-employed borrowers classified as credit risk

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Lender limbo: Surge in self-employed borrowers classified as credit risk

Published: 27 Apr. 2025, 20:40

A rental sign for a retail space is posted near Hongik University in western Seoul on April 27. The number of self-employed individuals classified as credit risk borrowers after falling more than three months behind on loans from financial institutions has surged by nearly 30 percent over the past year. Half self-employed borrowers now hold loans from three or more companies. The number of borrowers pushed out of top-tier banks and forced to take out high-interest loans from secondary lenders is also rapidly increasing, raising alarm bells that many are reaching the limits of their repayment capacity. [YONHAP]