Jeonbuk Bank Begins Bitcoin-Backed Corporate Lending

Jeonbuk Bank has begun offering Korean-won loans secured by Bitcoin to corporate borrowers, making it the first South Korean bank reported to provide this type of lending. The loans are intended for business operating costs, and Bitcoin is the only collateral accepted under the service. The bank’s structure separates lending from custody. Jeonbuk Bank assesses the collateral and issues the loan, while a specialist third-party provider holds the pledged Bitcoin. The bank says the arrangement does not place the coins in its direct custody. It has not publicly identified the custodian or named the borrower. If a borrower defaults, the bank’s stated recovery route is a court-supervised sale of the Bitcoin, with proceeds used to recover the debt. The process relies on revised Civil Execution Rules that took effect October 1, 2026, setting out procedures for enforcement involving digital assets. The reporting establishes no completed default sale or tested recovery under the arrangement. Jeonbuk Bank has described a valuation process using weighted prices from multiple exchanges, volatility measures and stress tests. The bank selected Bitcoin citing its liquidity.