The financial regulator will step up efforts to ease regulations for credit card companies to help them weather difficult business conditions amid the slowing economy, its chief said Tuesday.

“We’ll look into loosening regulations for credit card firms so that they can innovate themselves and find new sources of profits,” Gov. Choi Soo-hyun of the Financial Supervisory Service told reporters ahead of a meeting with heads of major card companies.

The regulator will consider allowing credit card companies to provide its customers with various ancillary services as a way to boost profits. 

The FSS will shorten the inspection procedure for the plastic money industry so that they can focus more on their businesses, it added.

The governor’s remarks came as local credit card companies have been struggling with their earnings, nearly halving to 462.2 billion won ($397.2 million) in the first quarter from a year earlier, largely due to a low-rate policy and a slowing economy.

Their business conditions have worsened since late last year as the regulator revised rules in which card firms must lower their commission rates for smaller subscribed stores as part of the government policy to support small and medium enterprises.

While promising more policy flexibility for card companies, the FSS chief stressed that the fee reduction scheme should never result in customers being inconvenienced.

Choi also said the FSS will soon roll out a revised system for potential loan holders to be able to compare borrowing rates of loans at secondary lenders, including insurance companies, to better serve consumers. (Yonhap News)