Woori Financial tops W3tr in earnings
Group expects to reduce industry's heaviest banking reliance with planned insurance acquisitions
Woori Financial Group surpassed 3 trillion won ($2,06 billion) in annual net profit in 2024, with Woori Bank reaching the milestone for the first time.
The group on Friday reported a consolidated net profit of 3.08 trillion won, up 23.1 percent from the previous year, marking the second time it exceeded the 3 trillion won threshold since 2022.
Profitability improved, with return on equity rising by 1 percentage point on-year to 9.3 percent. Total income increased 6.1 percent to 10.44 trillion won, driven by a 1.6 percent rise in interest income to 8.89 trillion won. Non-interest income surged nearly 42 percent to 1.55 trillion won.
In the fourth quarter, net profit reached 426 billion won, sharply rebounding from 68.1 billion won a year earlier, though it more than halved from 904.4 billion won in the previous quarter due to valuation losses on the weakening won.
Among subsidiaries, Woori Bank posted a record 3.04 trillion won in consolidated net profit, up 21.3 percent on-year. Woori Card saw a 32.6 percent increase in net profit to 147.2 billion won, while Woori Investment Securities swung from a 54 billion won loss in 2023 to a 2.6 billion won profit.
Woori Financial's dependence on its banking unit remained pronounced. Woori Bank accounted for 91.6 percent of total net income across its 14 subsidiaries, the highest among Korea's four major financial groups and the only one exceeding 90 percent.
During Friday's earnings call, Chief Financial Officer Lee Sung-wook highlighted the expectation that banking dependence will decrease this year, driven by the planned acquisitions of Tongyang Life Insurance and ABL Life Insurance.
'With these acquisitions, we aim to reduce the group's reliance on banking by expanding our nonbanking portfolio and enhancing corporate value,' Lee said, projecting that the banking unit's share of total profit will fall to 80 percent after the deals are completed.
The CFO also reassured that the acquisitions would have minimal impact on financial stability, with Common Equity Tier 1 capital steadily increasing since the fourth quarter. As of year-end, the company's CET1 ratio, a key measure of financial stability, stood at 12.08 percent, up 0.13 percentage point from September. The company pledged to raise the ratio to 12.5 percent this year.
Meanwhile, the board approved a year-end cash dividend of 660 won per share for 2024, bringing the total annual dividend to a record 1,200 won per share. For this year, the board authorized a 150 billion won share buyback and cancellation program, a 10 percent increase from last year, with a target shareholder return of 35 to 40 percent.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Korea Herald
a day ago
- Korea Herald
Lee, Trump agree to meet soon, tee up ‘golf for alliance': Seoul
Trump and Lee share experiences of surviving assassination attempts in their first call South Korean President Lee Jae-myung and US President Donald Trump agreed to meet as soon as possible — and play a round of golf — with Trump inviting Lee to visit the US, Seoul's presidential office said Friday. The first phone call between Lee and Trump occurred around 10 p.m. Friday, two days after Lee was inaugurated president on Wednesday after his confirmed victory in Tuesday's early presidential election. The 20-minute phone conversation drew heightened attention in Seoul as the alliance faces a laundry list of pending issues on multiple fronts, from security to trade. 'The two presidents agreed to work toward reaching a tariff agreement between the US and South Korea that would be satisfactory to both countries,' said Kang Yu-jung, the presidential spokesperson, in a written statement. To that end, Lee and Trump agreed to 'encourage tangible results from the working-level negotiations.' Seoul and Washington have been engaged in working-level negotiations ahead of the expiration of a 90-day self-imposed moratorium on Trump's reciprocal tariffs, which are scheduled to take effect for each country on July 9. The deadline set by the Trump administration for all US trading partners to submit their best offers on a trade deal expired Wednesday. According to Lee's office, 'President Trump invited President Lee to visit the US, and President Lee responded that he hopes to meet and consult frequently with the US as part of their special alliance.' 'The two presidents agreed to meet at the earliest possible time — either on the sidelines of a multilateral meeting or on the occasion of a bilateral visit — to further discuss the development of the alliance," the statement added. Lee's office confirmed Saturday morning that he will attend the G7 Summit in Alberta, Canada, on June 16–17 as an observer state—setting the stage for his first face-to-face meeting with Trump. Another possible opportunity for the two leaders to meet is the upcoming NATO Summit in The Hague on June 24–25, where South Korea has been invited as one of four Indo-Pacific partners, alongside Australia, Japan, and New Zealand. However, when asked on Saturday whether Lee would participate in the NATO summit, a presidential official speaking on condition of anonymity said, 'That issue has not been discussed yet.' Golf, parallel experience connect leaders Meanwhile, Lee's office highlighted Friday that the phone call between Lee and Trump took place in a 'friendly and informal atmosphere.' Notably, the presidential office in Seoul shared that Lee and Trump 'introduced their respective golfing skills and agreed to play a round for the alliance whenever possible.' Trump is well known for his passion for golf. 'The two presidents also shared various anecdotes and experiences from their presidential campaigns, particularly concerning the risks of assassination and the political challenges they faced,' the presidential office said. 'They agreed that strong leadership comes from overcoming such difficulties.' Lee was stabbed in the neck with a knife while visiting the construction site of a new airport in the southeastern port city of Busan in January 2024. In July last year, Trump's right ear was grazed by a bullet while he was campaigning for the 2024 presidential election in Pennsylvania. Delayed call draws political fire The Korea Herald has learned that South Korea's Foreign Ministry sought to arrange the first phone call between the two leaders on Lee's inauguration day. However, the call occurred later than his predecessors. President-elect Yoon Suk Yeol held his first phone call with then-US President Joe Biden about five hours after his election on March 10, 2022. Similarly, President Moon Jae-in spoke with his US counterpart on the day of his inauguration, May 10, 2017, despite the absence of a traditional transition period following the early presidential election. Then President-elect Park Geun-hye held a phone call with US President Barack Obama two days after her victory on December 19, 2012. The protracted phone call drew criticism in Seoul, mainly from the opposition People Power Party — especially after the White House issued an unusual response to the presidential election, expressing US concern and opposition to "Chinese interference and influence in democracies around the world."
Korea Herald
2 days ago
- Korea Herald
Lee, Trump agree to meet soon, tee up golf for alliance: Seoul
South Korean President Lee Jae-myung and US President Donald Trump agreed to meet as soon as possible — and play a round of golf — with Trump inviting Lee to visit the US, Seoul's presidential office said. The first phone call between Lee and Trump occurred around 10 p.m. Friday, two days after Lee was officially inaugurated as president on Wednesday, following his confirmed victory in Tuesday's early presidential election. The 20-minute phone conversation drew heightened attention in Seoul as the alliance faces a laundry list of pending issues on multiple fronts, from security to trade. 'The two presidents agreed to work toward reaching a tariff agreement between the US and South Korea that would be satisfactory to both countries,' said Kang Yu-jung, the presidential spokesperson, in a written statement. To that end, Lee and Trump agreed to 'encourage tangible results from the working-level negotiations.' Seoul and Washington have been engaged in working-level negotiations ahead of the expiration of a 90-day self-imposed moratorium on Trump's reciprocal tariffs, which are scheduled to take effect for each country on July 9. The deadline set by the Trump administration for all US trading partners to submit their best offers on a trade deal expired Wednesday. According to Lee's office, 'President Trump invited President Lee to visit the US, and President Lee responded that he hopes to meet and consult frequently with the US as part of their special alliance.' 'The two presidents agreed to meet at the earliest possible time — either on the sidelines of a multilateral meeting or on the occasion of a bilateral visit — to further discuss the development of the alliance," the statement added. Notably, the presidential office in Seoul disclosed that Lee and Trump 'introduced their respective golfing skills and agreed to play a round for the alliance whenever possible.' Trump and Lee could meet on the sidelines of two multilateral events in June. The first is the G7 Summit in Alberta, Canada, on June 16–17, 2025, if South Korea is invited as an observer state and decides to attend. The other opportunity is the upcoming NATO Summit in The Hague on June 24–25, which South Korea has been invited to as one of four Indo-Pacific partners alongside Australia, Japan and New Zealand. Lee's office highlighted that the call between Lee and Trump was conducted with a 'friendly and informal atmosphere.' 'The two presidents also shared various anecdotes and experiences from their presidential campaigns, particularly concerning the risks of assassination and the political challenges they faced,' the presidential office said. 'They agreed that strong leadership comes from overcoming such difficulties.' The Korea Herald has learned that South Korea's Foreign Ministry sought to arrange the first phone call between the two leaders on Lee's inauguration day. However, the call occurred later than his predecessors. President-elect Yoon Suk Yeol held his first phone call with then-US President Joe Biden about five hours after his election on March 10, 2022. Similarly, President Moon Jae-in spoke with his US counterpart on the day of his inauguration, May 10, 2017, despite the absence of a traditional transition period following the early presidential election. Then President-elect Park Geun-hye held a phone call with US President Barack Obama two days after her victory on December 19, 2012. The protracted phone call drew criticism in Seoul, mainly from the opposition People Power Party — especially after the White House issued an unusual response to the presidential election, expressing US concern and opposition to "Chinese interference and influence in democracies around the world."
Korea Herald
2 days ago
- Korea Herald
More picks made for Lee's presidential office
President Lee Jae-myung on Friday continued to round out his policy team with more appointments of aides. Kang Hoon-sik, the chief of staff to Lee, told a briefing that former vice finance minister, Kim Yong-beom, has been tapped to serve as presidential chief of staff for policy. Kang said Ha Joon-kyung, a professor of economics at Hanyang University, was appointed as senior presidential secretary for economic growth, and Moon Jin-young, a professor of social welfare studies at Sogang University, as senior presidential secretary for social affairs. Kang said the presidential secretary for gender equality, a post eliminated under the last administration, would be reinstated. A new post of a presidential secretary in charge of maritime trade affairs would be instituted, Kang added. Expanding the country's trade opportunities with the opening up of Arctic routes had been one of Lee's key pledges as candidate.
