The central bank is desperate to rebuild confidence

In a statement on Tuesday, the bank said that the rush to withdraw funds associated with the stricken company or from troubled credit card issuers has slowed sharply.

At its peak on 12 March, the bank said, 5 trillion won ($4bn) was being pulled out every day. That flow has now fallen by 90%.

But even if the SK effect is waning, the after-effects of Korea's credit boom are still hitting financial institutions, as LG Card - one of the main issuers of credit cards in Korea - reported that overdue payments suged to 9.4% of total assets in February from 7.3% in January.

LG Card's shares took a battering as a result, falling more than 10%.

Credit crunch

South Korean consumers' love affair with the credit card has helped drive the economy through the tough times of the past year or so.

But local media say this has come at a price, with bad debts at credit card companies totalling as much as 11 trillion won.

This has forced the government to offer to buy almost half of them with public funds.

The troubles at SK Global, the trading arm of the country's fourth biggest conglomerate, are part of the same picture.

The company, which has admitted to fiddling its figures to the tune of $1.2bn, is now being pored over by creditors trying to restructure it while its debt repayments are frozen for three months.