a day ago
Woori Bank opens first Korean bank branch in Texas
Woori Bank, a banking subsidiary of Woori Financial Group, said Sunday its US arm has opened a branch in Austin, Texas, becoming the first Korean bank to establish a presence in the city.
The new branch will provide core financial services such as account opening, remittances and lending to help Korean companies settle in the southern US. It will also leverage networks in accounting, tax and legal services to assist with establishing local subsidiaries and serve Korean expatriates, the bank explained.
'Launching the first branch in the city as a Korean bank, where many Korean companies have taken root, carries significant meaning,' a Woori Bank official said, pledging continued support for the Korean business community in the southern US.
The lender noted that the move also comes as capital investment from South Korea into the US is expected to increase, ahead of the Aug. 25 summit between President Lee Jae Myung and US President Donald Trump.
Austin, home to about 15,000 Korean residents, has become a hub for advanced industries such as semiconductors and artificial intelligence. For instance, Samsung Austin Semiconductor has operated in the city for more than three decades, while Samsung Electronics is building a new chip plant in Taylor, Texas.
The Austin branch is Woori's second in Texas after Dallas, and its third in the US South, including a location in Duluth, Georgia.
