All-In Borrowing (Yeongkkeul)
영끌
A Korean neologism short for 'pulling together even one's soul,' referring to the practice of mobilizing every available loan and fund to purchase housing or invest, borrowing to the absolute limit. The term spread among Koreans in their 20s and 30s during the post-COVID-19 low-interest boom of 2020–2021, when soaring home prices made homeownership unreachable through wages alone. As rates rose, the debt-service burden on these all-in borrowers became a core axis of Korea's household-debt risk; together with bit-tu (debt-financed stock investing), the term came to symbolize both the overheating and the fragility of Korea's asset markets.
Sources
- Wikipedia (KO) (Korean Wikipedia, MZ세대 article, 영끌 subsection: defines the term as abbreviation of '영혼까지 끌어모으다' and situates it within 2030-generation housing struggles)
- kbthink.com (KB Think financial dictionary: etymology, COVID-19 context, and connection to 빚투/debt-financed investing)
- yeongnam.com (Yeongnam Ilbo, May 2026: detailed report on 영끌 practice, DSR burden, and 경매/foreclosure consequences in Daegu housing market)