Woori Bank's headquarters, left, and Industrial Bank of Korea's headquarters in Seoul / Korea Times file
A series of commercial property scams at major lenders has put banks on alert for similar fraud schemes involving external parties, industry officials said Tuesday.
Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) on Monday disclosed a financial fraud case involving 4.78 billion won ($3.11 million) linked to a commercial property presales scam.
According to a regulatory filing, the incident took place between May and December 2024 and was uncovered after investigative authorities requested related documents. The scam involved borrowers misleading the lender about property values and presales prices to secure loans larger than they would have qualified for.
The bank said it has yet to determine the expected amount of losses.
