South Korea Recoups 71.4% of Financial Bailout Funds Since Asian Crisis

SEOUL — The South Korean government has reclaimed 71.4 percent of public funds used to rescue ailing financial firms following the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis, according to the Financial Services Commission (FSC) on Monday.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the government has been paid back 71.4 percent of the total 168.7 trillion won (US$124.8 billion) that was disbursed as bailout funds. This reflects a marginal increase of 0.3 percentage points from the end of the previous year.

The FSC also indicated that during the third quarter of this year alone, South Korea recovered 3.3 billion won. This amount was primarily sourced from dividends from Woori Financial Group shares that are held by the government.