Korea Credit Information (KCS), the only full-time personal credit evaluator in the country, has secured a new investment of 1 billion won from Hana Bank. KCS previously received an investment from KB Kookmin Bank in January 2022. With this investment, KCS has now received funding from half of South Korea's four major financial holding banks.

KCS announced on the 13th that it has secured a total of 2 billion won in new investments from Hana Bank and its parent company, Korea Credit Data (KCD). Hana Bank plans to collaborate with KCS in various financial sectors, including expanding small business loans and providing pre-diagnostic services for policy funds.

KCS provided /Courtesy of KCS Hana Bank

With this latest investment round, KCS has received investments from six banks, bringing the total amount of funds raised to over 22.2 billion won. This is interpreted as recognition of the need for business evaluation models and data in the small business sector.

Investors in KCS include KCD, Kakao Bank, iM Bank, Seoul Guarantee Insurance, IBK Industrial Bank, KB Kookmin Bank, Hyundai Capital, Jeonbuk Bank, and Welcome Savings Bank.

KCS provides credit evaluation data for small business owners through its credit evaluation service, "Credit Note," aimed at evaluating the creditworthiness based on the business capacity of small businesses and individual business owners.

They also offer a service for issuing credit rating certificates through automated assessments, known as "the fastest issuance of credit rating certificates in 3 minutes." The instant credit rating inquiry service allows users to check their credit ratings before purchasing a report, while the unlimited issuance product updates ratings monthly for up to two years, allowing for report generation. Approximately 160,000 establishments (as of December 2024) have utilized KCS's services.

KCS also collaborates with major public institutions such as the Small Enterprise and Market Promotion Agency and the Seoul Credit Guarantee Foundation to provide policy funding and guarantee diagnosis services for small businesses. For small businesses with shorter operating histories, KCS plans to launch a service that uses past startup records for credit evaluation information and consolidates the various establishments owned by individual business owners for analysis within this year.

Byungwoo Jeon, head of corporate business at Hana Bank, noted, "Hana Bank plans to create new synergies through collaboration with KCS in various financial areas, including expanding small business loans and pre-diagnostic services for policy funds, and to extend this collaboration across the entire group."

Sangwoo Kim, CEO of Korea Credit Information (KCS), said, "We will connect the potential of individual business owners with credit alongside competitive shareholders to create more financial opportunities and grow together with our clients to provide greater value."