Policy loan repayment period extended by one year for SMEs hit by TMON-Wemakeprice crisis; no additional interest-rate premium

[Financial News] The government will introduce a “special extension of policy loan maturities” to ease the financial burden on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) affected by the TMON-Wemakeprice (TMEF) crisis.
According to the Ministry of SMEs and Startups on the 4th, the measure was prepared as the two-year grace period on principal repayments ended for companies that received the Emergency Management Stability Fund through the TMON-Wemakeprice victim support program from September to December 2024, and the time came to begin repaying principal over three years.
Eligible companies are those that received the Emergency Management Stability Fund through the program at the time. The special maturity extension will apply to loans provided to support TMON-Wemakeprice victims.
In particular, companies that are up to 30 days delinquent on loans under the SME policy fund program will also be eligible, extending support to affected businesses struggling with temporary repayment burdens. 
Eligible companies can extend the grace period on principal repayments by one year.
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups plans to ease companies’ repayment burdens in a meaningful way by waiving minimum principal repayment requirements and not charging an additional interest-rate premium for the maturity extension.
Applications for the special maturity extension will be accepted from today through February 26 next year.
Sim Jaeyun, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups’ director general for global growth policy, said, “We expect this measure to help ease the temporary liquidity pressures facing SMEs affected by the TMON-Wemakeprice crisis and support their return to normal business operations.”

[email protected] Kim Hyeon-cheol Reporter