[Courtesy of JTBC ]
South Korea's financial authorities are looking into whether a local bank has extended illicit or preferential loans to President Park Geun-hye's friend at the heart of a massive influence-peddling scandal and her daughter, officials said Monday.
Choi Soon-sil, known as a longtime confidante to Park, and her daughter Chung Yoo-ra, currently a college student, are alleged to have taken out foreign exchange loans illegally or at least with preferential treatment from KEB Hana Bank, the largest lender here.
They received a loan of around 250,000 euros ($270,000) by using their land in Pyeongchang in the eastern province of Gangwon as collateral in late 2015, just months before moving to Europe.
They used a letter of payment guarantee from the bank to get the money in Germany, a borrowing process common among trading companies, according to Rep. Jung Jae-ho of the main opposition Minjoo Party. It's apparently aimed at covering the tracks of their financial transactions, he argued.'
"We are working to figure out the relevant facts," an official at the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) said, citing a comprehensive audit of KEB Hana Bank.
The watchdog has prolonged the regular audit through Friday rather than launching a separate special probe. The FSS is also closely monitoring the possibility of additional suspicions regarding Choi's financial transactions.
(Yonhap)
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
