Gov’t recoups W7b of public funds in Q3

[THE INVESTOR] South Korea recouped 6.7 billion won (US$5.9 million) of bailout funds in the third quarter, the government said on Oct. 25.

The retrieval of taxpayers’ money stemmed largely from the liquidation of non-performing assets, according to the Financial Services Commission.

The government has spent a total of 168.7 trillion won since November 1997 to bail out financial services and other firms in a bid to cushion the shock to the nation‘s economy.

It recovered 112.1 trillion won, or 66.5 percent, as of the end of September, the FSC said.

The government is also pushing for the privatization of Woori Bank, a major local lender, within this year in a bid to recoup more public funds.

The government holds a 51 percent stake in the country’s third-largest bank by asset through the state-run Korea Deposit Insurance Corp., and it plans to sell off 30 percent to several different buyers.

(theinvestor@heraldcorp.com)