Will KDB bail out SsangYong Motor under new administration?

Another industry source who requested anonymity said that the KDB currently has a lot on its plate at the moment, including Yoon’s reaffirmation last week to carry out its election pledge of relocating the state-run lender’s headquarters to the southern port city of Busan from Seoul.

“The headquarter relocation is a big issue for them at the moment, but with the recent failure of a merger between Hyundai Heavy Industries Group and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, KDB is expected to receive further flak for two consecutive failures if they refuse to bail out SsangYong,” the source explained.

In January, the European Commission — the European Union’s antitrust regulator – decided to veto the merger between the two Korean shipbuilders, saying such a move could create a monopoly in the liquefied natural gas carrier market. KDB, which is the main creditor of the heavily indebted Daewoo Shipbuilding, has expressed strong regret over the European Commission’s choice.