NH Nonghyup Bank tops NTS list of business borrowed-name accounts with 703 cases
In short
The National Tax Service identified 3,471 business borrowed-name accounts at 28 financial companies from last year through July this year, with NH Nonghyup Bank topping the list at 703 cases, according to data obtained by Rep. Kang Min-guk's office. Reports to the tax agency have declined since peaking at 13,988 in 2022, and 31.4 percent of reports over seven years were used for taxation. Rep. Kang criticized the agency for not keeping financial-company statistics, while the agency said it manages individual reports accurately but not by company.
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The National Tax Service identified 3,471 business borrowed-name accounts at 28 financial companies from last year through July this year, Yonhap reported, citing data compiled by the office of Rep. Kang Min-guk of the People Power Party. NH Nonghyup Bank accounted for the largest number, with 703 cases, a figure Seoul Shinmun also highlighted. [ 1 , 2 ]
Kookmin Bank followed with 497 cases, Nonghyup cooperatives with 471 and Shinhan Bank with 319, according to the data. The four institutions together accounted for 1,990 cases, or 57.3 percent of the total. Below them were Industrial Bank of Korea with 277 cases, Woori Bank with 270, KakaoBank with 241, Hana Bank with 185, iM Bank with 91 and Saemaul Geumgo with 85. [ 1 ]
Reports to the tax agency from 2020 through July this year totaled 78,398, the data showed. The annual figure peaked at 13,988 in 2022 and has fallen since, to 12,961 in 2023, 12,769 in 2024 and 10,739 last year. Of the reports, 24,648, or 31.4 percent, were used for taxation through audits or written checks, a number that also declined each year, from 6,245 in 2020 to 2,698 last year. [ 1 ]
The National Tax Service pays a reward of 1 million won per case when confirmed additional tax collected exceeds 10 million won. Over roughly seven years, 7,488 rewards were paid, totaling 7.49 billion won, or 9.6 percent of reports. Reward payments fell from 1,784 cases worth 1.78 billion won in 2020 to 704 cases worth 704 million won in 2024, before rising slightly to 769 cases worth 769 million won last year. [ 1 ]
Rep. Kang criticized the agency for not separately managing total detection results and for not holding financial-company data, noting the breakdown was compiled at his office's request. He called it “absurd” to attribute the decline in reports simply to the COVID-19 economic contraction and the agency's efforts, and said neglecting borrowed-name accounts risks abuse for tax evasion and raises fairness problems for honest taxpayers. He urged higher rewards and more active promotion of reporting. [ 1 ]
The National Tax Service said it “manages individual report information accurately” but does not keep such information as statistics by financial company, and said it “will seek various measures to eradicate the use of borrowed-name accounts.” [ 1 ]
Why it matters
The figures put the scale and enforcement of borrowed-name accounts, which the documents link to tax evasion, into a public dispute between a lawmaker and the tax agency. Rep. Kang's criticism concerns how the National Tax Service records and uses the reports, and he has proposed higher rewards and more promotion of reporting as remedies. The documents give no indication that any rule or reward change has been decided.
Key facts
- A total of 3,471 business borrowed-name accounts at 28 financial companies were reported to the National Tax Service from last year through July this year, according to data the agency provided to Rep. Kang Min-guk's office. [ 1 ]
- NH Nonghyup Bank had the most accounts, with 703 cases, followed by Kookmin Bank (497), Nonghyup cooperatives (471) and Shinhan Bank (319). [ 1 , 2 ]
- Those four institutions accounted for 1,990 cases, or 57.3 percent of the total. [ 1 ]
- Reports from 2020 through July this year totaled 78,398, peaking at 13,988 in 2022 and declining afterwards, to 10,739 last year. [ 1 ]
- Of the reports over seven years, 24,648, or 31.4 percent, were used for taxation through audits or written checks, a figure that also declined each year. [ 1 ]
- The tax agency pays a reward of 1 million won per case when confirmed additional tax collected exceeds 10 million won; 7,488 rewards were paid over roughly seven years, totaling 7.49 billion won, or 9.6 percent of reports. [ 1 ]
- Rep. Kang said the National Tax Service neither manages nor holds financial-company data on borrowed-name accounts, while the agency said it manages individual report information accurately but does not keep statistics by financial company. [ 1 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- NH Nonghyup Bank had the largest number of business borrowed-name accounts in the data, with 703 cases detected from last year through July this year. [ 1 , 2 ]
- The National Tax Service said it manages individual report information accurately but does not maintain separate statistics by financial company. [ 1 ]
- National Tax Service data showed 3,471 business borrowed-name accounts at 28 financial companies from last year through July this year. [ 1 ]
Still unclear
- Why the number of borrowed-name account reports and reward payments has declined. Rep. Kang criticized the tax agency for attributing the decline to the COVID-19 economic contraction and the agency's own efforts, while the National Tax Service did not address the cause in the report.
- The overall scale of borrowed-name accounts detected, beyond the figures compiled for the lawmaker. According to Rep. Kang, the National Tax Service does not separately manage total detection results or hold financial-company data, and the financial-company breakdown was compiled only at his office's request.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Yonhap publishes its report on the National Tax Service data, including the financial-company breakdown, yearly figures and reactions from Rep. Kang Min-guk and the agency. [ 1 ]
- Seoul Shinmun publishes a report saying NH Nonghyup Bank had the most business borrowed-name accounts, with 703 cases detected over two years. [ 2 ]