Lee vows action against ‘predatory’ debt collection practices

May 12, 2026, 09:48 am

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President ee Jae-myung speaks during a Cabinet meeting and emergency economic review session at the presidential office on May 6. /Yonhap

Lee Jae-myung said Tuesday that the government would seek solutions regarding concerns that long-term debt held by Sangnoksoo, a private bad bank established during South Korea’s credit card crisis, has been excluded from state debt relief programs.

Sharing a related news report on X, formerly Twitter, Lee wrote that he “did not realize such primitive predatory finance was still surviving and tightening its grip on ordinary people.”

He also criticized financial regulators, questioning why supervisory authorities had failed to identify what he described as unfair practices.

According to the report, Sangnoksoo was created by the private sector to help resolve bad debt stemming from the country’s credit card crisis. However, critics argue that aggressive debt collection practices and a requirement for unanimous shareholder consent to participate in the government’s Saedoreum debt adjustment program have left many long-term delinquent borrowers outside institutional support measures.

Lee stressed that financial institutions should bear social responsibility alongside profit-making activities.

“There are limits even in economic and profit-seeking activities,” he said. “Money may be important, but we are living together as members of the same community. Excess is as bad as deficiency.”

Lee added that the issue would be discussed during Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting, saying the government would explore possible solutions.

#Lee Jae-myung #bad bank #Sangnoksoo #debt collection