The amount of money funneled to South Korean banks in deposits and bank debentures soared in 2015 from a year earlier, central bank data showed Sunday,apparently due to a rise in floating money prompted by low interest rates and uncertainties in the investment market.
The total amount of funds held by local banks came to 1,391 trillion won ($1.15 trillion) at the end of 2015, up 106.7 trillion won from a year earlier, according to the data from the Bank of Korea .
The 2015 tally marked the fastest rate of increase since the central bank began compiling such data in 2002, while also marking a 59.3 percent spike from a 67 trillion won increase in 2014.
The BOK has kept its key rate frozen at a record low 1.5 percent since June in an attempt to help bolster growth in Asia’s fourth-largest economy.(Yonhap)
Source : The Korea Herald Newspaper, February 15, 2016