Innovate or fail in 2023, Korean finance chiefs say

Financial company chiefs are sounding alarms about low growth in Korea and looking for opportunity overseas.

KB Financial Group Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo [NEWS1]

Financial company chiefs are sounding alarms about low growth in Korea and looking for opportunity overseas.

“We have to strengthen the group’s capacity in terms of investment and asset management,” Yoon Jong-kyoo, Chairman at KB Financial Group, said on Monday. “Fundamental competitiveness of finance is transforming from brokerage and sales to asset management and operations.”

KB will expand in Southeast Asia to overcome the saturated financial markets of Korea.

Yoon also stressed the importance of expanding beyond finance and to the global markets.

He noted the need to raise future competitiveness by expanding partnerships with non-financial companies in the fields of real estate, mobility, telecommunications and health care. KB also hopes to raise the influence of KB Star Banking, through which users can use online wallets and payment services.

Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byoung [YONHAP]

Also on Monday, Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byoung highlighted change.

He said change is “more desperate than at any other time. Without change, there will be no growth or leap forward.”

Cho added the change of chairmanship was a decision made to head towards a “bigger future instead of staying in the past and present.”

A Shinhan Bank board committee recommended Jin Ok-dong, a former Shinhan Bank CEO, as chairman in December. Cho will step down in March.

“A rougher environment is waiting ahead of us. The storm of the global crisis is strong and our society is all suffering from the low growth caused by” high inflation, high interest rates and a weak won, Cho said.

“Increasing value starts from strengthening the main job of finance. We need to offer personalized data-based finance and raise the level of our global competitiveness to that of international financial companies,” he added.

Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo [YONHAP]

Hana Financial Group Chairman similarly told employees not to settle but to endlessly innovate.

“Competitors ahead of us are making a lot better accomplishments that us by endlessly changing and renovating,” he said, adding they have to “act now.”

Ham said Hana has to strengthen its strengths, including investment banking and asset management, and expand into new fields of business through mergers and acquisitions. Mobility, health care and cryptocurrency were some of the areas he mentioned.

Woori Financial Group Chairman Son Tae-seung [YONHAP]

Woori Financial Group Chairman Son Tae-seung mentioned that “fears of recession” have spread among CEOs.

“Our focus this year will be overcoming strong waves while planning an engine-of-growth pivot to be able to immediately catch opportunities that will follow” the difficulties, he said.

Son also noted the importance of expanding opportunities in non-finance businesses, and strengthening asset management and targeting the pension market.

BY JIN MIN-JI [jin.minji@joongang.co.kr]