South Korean Banks Launch Currency Stabilization 2026 Efforts as Won Slides

The psychological barrier of 1,450 won per dollar has been breached. As the local currency continues its downward spiral despite verbal interventions, South Korea's major lenders are taking drastic steps to curb dollar hoarding and stabilize the volatile foreign exchange market.

South Korean Banks Currency Stabilization 2026: Slashing Interest Rates

According to industry sources on January 18, 2026, commercial banks are aggressively disincentivizing U.S. dollar holdings. Woori Bank has slashed interest rates on its travel-focused dollar deposit products from 1.0% to just 0.1%. The move aims to discourage retail investors from parking their cash in greenbacks as the won hit 1,473.6 per dollar last Friday.

KB Kookmin Bank is also rolling out promotional events for exporters to convert their foreign earnings back into won. "We're considering various additional steps to support the government's exchange rate policy," a bank official said, noting that they're closely monitoring the "Bessent effect" and broad dollar strength.

Authorities Pressure Banks to Halt Aggressive Marketing

The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) plans to meet with major lenders on Monday to urge restraint in marketing that promotes foreign currency deposits. This follows a move by the Bank of Korea (BOK) to pay interest on foreign currency required reserves—a temporary measure to boost domestic dollar liquidity and shore up the struggling won.