Korea’s top four financial holding companies set to post record results in 2025

(Yonhap)

South Korea’s major financial holding companies are projected to have posted record-high net profits last year, boosted by an increase in non-interest income such as commissions.

According to financial information provider FnGuide Inc. on Thursday, the combined annual net profit of the country’s four major financial holding companies is expected to reach 18.4 trillion won ($12.57 billion) for 2025, up 11.4 percent from 2024.

The four financial groups are KB, Shinhan, Hana, and Woori.

However, the figure is slightly lower than market forecasts from a month earlier (18.55 trillion won), reflecting the impact of rising market interest rates and a persistently weak won.

KB Financial Group is expected to come close to the 6 trillion won mark in net profit, while Shinhan Financial Group and Hana Financial Group are projected to surpass 5 trillion won and 4 trillion won, respectively, for the first time.

Woori Financial Group is also expected to exceed 3 trillion won.

Brokerages estimated KB Financial Group’s net profit will rise 13.4 percent to 5.7 trillion won for 2025 from 5.03 trillion won in 2024.

Shinhan is estimated to see its net profit increase by 14.1 percent from 4.56 trillion won to 5.2 trillion won; Hana by 9 percent from 3.77 trillion won to 4.11 trillion won; and Woori by 7 percent from 3.17 trillion won to 3.39 trillion won during the cited period.

Brokerages also expected the combined annual net profit of the four holding companies to reach 19.14 trillion won this year, approaching the 20 trillion won mark for the first time.

However, interest income, a revenue metric, is expected to decline across the board.

Market estimates put the four groups’ combined interest income last year at 101.49 trillion won, down 4.1 percent from 105.83 trillion won in 2024.

A decline in annual interest income among the four groups would mark the first such drop in five years, since 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic, as tighter household lending management appears to have reduced related earnings.

Hana Financial is scheduled to announce its results on January 30, followed by KB and Shinhan on February 5, and Woori on February 6.

Meanwhile, the average annual salary of employees at the four financial groups ranged from 160 million won to 178 million won as of 2024.

Performance-based compensation paid to financial-sector executives and employees averaged about 159 million won per person during the cited period.