South Korea's financial authorities and major banks have agreed to create a bond market stabilization fund worth ten trillion won.  

The agreement came on Friday when the Financial Services Commission and the Financial Supervisory Service held a meeting with the heads of the nation’s eight banks and discussed ways to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak. 

Participants shared the view that banks must play a responsible role to smoothly reactivate a bond market stabilization fund which played a key role in South Korea’s efforts to overcome the 2008 global financial crisis.  

In 2008, the bond market stabilization fund was created with banks injecting eight trillion won, while life and property insurance companies as well as securities firms invested some two trillion won. 

Financial authorities and banks plan to expand the size of the fund if deemed necessary while keeping a close eye on any exhaustion of funds.