The government was found to have rejected a request by North Korea to open an account at a South Korean bank operating at a cooperative industrial park in the North.

A government official said Tuesday that the North conveyed its wish to Seoul to open an account at Woori Bank’s branch office in the North’s border city of Gaesong in December for convenience in collecting taxes and processing wages.

Shortly after the request, government officials and Woori officials held discussions and decided to turn down the North’s request, apparently due to Seoul's close cooperation with the United States.

Woori Bank opened a branch office in Gaesong last December to provide loan and deposit services as well as foreign exchange services to South Korean companies that operate in the industrial complex.

The nation's second-largest bank in terms of assets was also the first South Korean bank to open a branch in the communist state.