38.67 billion won returned out of 162.84 billion won sought over 5 years

Application rate rising, but return rate has fallen by half

Fraud-linked accounts top list of rejection reasons

Lawmaker Kim calls program 'rescue in name only'

Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation [Herald DB]
Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation [Herald DB]

Of the roughly 160 billion won ($117 million) sought through the government's misdirected-transfer return program — which helps people recover money sent to the wrong account — only 38.6 billion won was actually returned, according to data released Thursday. Applications have consistently increased over the past five years, but the return rate has fallen by half. Critics say the program's effectiveness is undermined because accounts linked to fraud and other crimes — the very cases where bank-based recovery is most difficult — are excluded from eligibility.

Data submitted to the office of Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Kim Yong-man, a member of the National Assembly's Political Affairs Committee, by the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation showed that of the 162.84 billion won applied for under the misdirected-transfer return system from the second half of 2021 through June, only 38.67 billion won — or 23.7 percent — was actually returned.

In terms of case counts, 26,836 of a cumulative 70,784 applications — 34.4 percent — resulted in a return, meaning roughly seven out of 10 people who used the program still did not get their money back.

The misdirected-transfer return system was introduced in July 2021 as a consumer financial protection measure. It was designed to reduce the time and legal costs that individuals would otherwise face in pursuing litigation when bank-based recovery alone proved insufficient.

Since the program launched, the number of applications has been on the rise. Annual filings grew from 11,478 in 2022 to 13,442 in 2023, 16,753 in 2024 and 21,566 in 2025 — more than doubling over the period. The number of cases the Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation approved for support, however, has remained largely flat: 5,402 cases (47.1 percent) in 2022, 5,780 (43.0 percent) in 2023, 5,288 (31.56 percent) in 2024 and 5,419 (25.12 percent) in 2025.

As a result, the return rate plunged from 47.1 percent in 2022 to 25.12 percent last year. The rate was even lower for high-value cases. Of 220 applications involving transfers of more than 50 million won but no more than 100 million won filed from 2023 through June, only 18 — 8.2 percent — resulted in a return. The program's ceiling was raised from 50 million won to 100 million won in 2023.

The most common reason for rejection was that the recipient account had been flagged as linked to fraud or other criminal activity. Of the 40,748 applications rejected between July 2021 and June, 12,441 fell into that category. The number of such rejections more than tripled, from 1,209 cases in 2022 to 3,920 in 2025, while the total amount involved surged more than fivefold — from 1.93 billion won to 11.13 billion won over the same period.

In practice, bank-based recovery is in effect impossible when a misdirected transfer goes to an account used for fraud, yet the public program also excludes such cases from support. The Korea Deposit Insurance Corporation told Kim's office that accounts linked to fraud or other crimes, accounts subject to legal measures such as seizure, and cases involving liquidation or bankruptcy are matters for individuals to pursue through legal channels.

"This program exists for people who cannot get their money back through banks, yet six or seven out of every 10 applications are being rejected," Kim said. "We must correct the corporation's passive administrative posture so the program does not remain a rescue in name only, and actively put real recovery procedures into operation."


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