Korea Asset Management

The Korea Asset Management Corporation (KAMCO) is a government-owned asset management company in South Korea. KAMCO has purchased and resolved non-performing loans (NPLs) of financial institutions, implemented the restructuring plan of corporations, assisted the financially-underprivileged to restore credit-worthiness, and managed state-owned properties and collected overdue taxes as a quasi governmental entity. KAMCO carried out its task of resolving non-performing loans efficiently and contributed to the efficient restructuring of the financial industry in Korea during the post-1997 Asian financial crisis period. KAMCO purchased the impaired assets and settled the gains or losses with the financial institutions involved once the assets recovered their value. It acquired impaired assets at $30.9 billion - the book value of which amounted to $85.1 billion by 2002 - and recovered $33.9 billion by 2008 by reselling to private investors through various methods, including public auctions, direct sales, international tenders, securitization and debt-equity swaps. The role of KAMCO has been five-fold: (1) the management and operation of the Non-Performing Assets Fund; (2) the acquisition and resolution of NPAs from financial institutions; (3) the implementation of work-out programs for distressed companies; (4) the management of government-owned properties and resolution of tax arrears; and (5) supporting the recovery of consumer credit. One of the major functions of KAMCO was to acquire and dispose of NPLs from financially distressed financial institutions and companies under rehabilitation plans. KAMCO was founded in 1962 and is based in Busan, South Korea.