디지털 금융소외 현상에 관한 법적 연구 - 은행법, 금융소비자보호법, 화폐법을 중심으로 = Legal Study on the Phenomenon of Digital Financial Exclusion - Focusing on the Banking Act, the Financial Consumer Protection Act, and Currency Act

국문 초록 (Abstract)

금융의 디지털 전환이 이루어지는 속도와 정도 등을 감안하면, 디지털 금융소외에 관한 금융법 전반에 걸친 통합적인 논의가 필요하다. 디지털 금융소외를 ‘금융의 디지털 전환 으로 인하여 금융소비자의 금융기관 접근, 금융거래, 지급결제 등에 제약이 발생하는 현 상’으로 정의하고, 금융기관 접근상의 제약 차원에서는 은행법을, 금융거래상 제약 차원 에서는 금융소비자보호법을, 지급결제상 제약 차원에서는 화폐법을 각 살펴보았다. 은행 법 차원에서는 은행 점포 폐쇄 과정의 내실화 방안에 관한 시사점을 도출하였고, 금융소 비자보호법 차원에서는 가칭 취약금융소비자 분류 신설, 법률전문조력인 제도의 도입 등 판매규제 개선 그 자체를 넘어선 해결방안 모색의 필요성을 제언하였다. 화폐법 차원에 서는 현금수취거절 금지의 입법 필요성 및 구체적 입법 방향을 검토하였다.

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This study is significant in that it defines digital financial exclusion from the perspective of financial law and provides a comprehensive overview of key issues arising under the Banking Act, the Financial Consumer Protection Act, and the Currency Act. Digital financial exclusion can be defined as “a phenomenon in which consumers face constraints in accessing financial institutions, conducting financial transactions, and executing payments as a result of the digital transformation of finance.” Based on this definition, this article analyzes the Banking Act with respect to constraints on access to financial institutions, the Financial Consumer Protection Act with respect to constraints in financial transactions, and the Currency Act with respect to constraints in payment and settlement. (i) under the Banking Act, branch closures by banks must be carried out in a substantive and accountable manner. Core elements relating to branch closures should be prescribed by statute, and specific criteria must be established to enhance predictability in bank branch reduction. Thorough supervisory oversight and sanctions for violations should accompany such measures, and care must be taken to ensure that alternative services offered in lieu of branch closures do not remain merely formalistic. (ii) Under the Financial Consumer Protection Act, improving the sale of non-face- to-face financial products requires measures that extend beyond sales regulation itself. Given that the limitations of applying sales regulations in non-face-to-face transactions stem from the very nature of such transactions, and that financial education has inherent constraints in enhancing consumer financial capability, these factors must be considered. As improvements beyond sales regulation, this article proposes reclassi- fication of financial consumers, recalibration of the cooling-off period, and the introduction of a legal professional assistance system. (iii) Under the Currency Act, addressing digital financial exclusion in the context of payment and settlement necessitates safeguarding the right to choose cash as a means of payment. Ideally, a prohibition on refusing cash payments should be stipulated in general legislation governing payment and settlement. Limited exceptions may be warranted based on factors such as sales volume, floor space, and business type. Sanctions for violations of the prohibition on refusing cash payments should take the form of administrative measures to ensure proportionality.