BNK Busan Bank said on the 2nd that it became South Korea’s first regional bank to apply the Financial Services Commission’s Small Business Credit Bureau (SCB) model to lending products. The system combines personal credit evaluation data with non-financial information, including sales revenue and commercial district analytics, to assess sole proprietors’ repayment capacity, business viability and growth potential more comprehensively than traditional reviews based mainly on credit bureau scores such as NICE and KCB. Since late August, the bank has operated the renamed ONE Credit Loan SOHO Growth Loan, formerly the ONE Credit Loan SOHO Mid-Rate Loan, with interest-rate preferences linked to SCB ratings. Customers with top-tier ratings can receive reductions of up to 0.3 percentage points. BNK Busan Bank plans to apply SCB ratings in the screening and pricing of collateralized loans exclusively for small-business owners in the second half of the year and participate in the Financial Services Commission’s sole proprietor bridge loan program. The bank aims to expand SCB use from rate discounts into a broader lending framework covering unsecured credit, collateralized loans and policy finance, supporting businesses across different stages from startups to stable growth.