Latest news with #WooriFinancialGroup
Korea Herald
22-05-2025
- Business
- Korea Herald
Woori Financial chief heads to Asia roadshow with post-M&A plan
Woori Financial Group Chairman Yim Jong-yong will embark on a five-day investor relations trip to Asian countries, marking his first solo overseas IR initiative since taking office in March 2023. From May 26 to 30, Yim will visit Indonesia and Hong Kong to outline his strategy for expanding group value following the acquisitions of Tongyang Life Insurance and ABL Life Insurance from China's Dajia for a total of approximately 1.54 trillion won ($1.1 billion). Yim will begin the trip in Indonesia, visiting Bank Woori Saudara, a local subsidiary with 31 branches and 130 offices alongside Woori Card to review performance and encourage staff. Bank Woori Saudara reported a net profit of 13.5 billion won in the first quarter. From May 28 to 30, Yim will host IR meetings in Hong Kong with major shareholders and institutional investors. The agenda includes plans to strengthen synergies across banking, insurance and securities arms, reduce Woori Bank's dominant share of group earnings, and share updated shareholder return policies and risk management frameworks. With regulatory approval now in place for Tongyang Life and ABL Life, Yim is expected to present Woori's roadmap to evolving into a comprehensive financial services provider. He will also address investor questions on the macroeconomic outlook in Korea and its implications for the group. This trip marks Lim's first in-person overseas IR event since joint appearances in London and the Middle East in late 2023. A Woori official said that foreign ownership of the group rose by over 8 percentage points last year. As of Tuesday, foreign shareholding stood at 45.2 percent, up from 37.96 percent at the end of 2023.
Korea Herald
14-05-2025
- Business
- Korea Herald
Woori mulls selling Seoul landmark to secure cash
Woori Financial Group is considering selling several core real estate assets, including the landmark Woori Financial Digital Tower in central Seoul, as it looks to raise capital for subsidiary acquisitions and improve its financial footing. The banking group is reviewing a potential sale of the 22-story building, located on a 2,247-square-meter plot across from its headquarters in Hoehyeon-dong, Jung-gu — one of Seoul's busiest commercial zones north of the Han River — according to industry sources on Wednesday. A Woori official confirmed the move, saying the sale is among several options under review to improve asset efficiency and secure capital for expansion. Woori acquired the building in July 2019 for about 210 billion won ($148.2 million). While no official valuation has been disclosed, its value is estimated to exceed 300 billion won, based on office pricing in the Central Business District, which is assessed by industry watchers at over 30 million won per 3.3 square meters. The tower currently houses the group's digital business units and affiliates, with a sale-and-leaseback arrangement among the options under consideration, the official added. The group also seeks to sell its corporate training center in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province. The facility was valued at approximately 34 billion won earlier this year. In addition, more than a dozen vacant bank branches in Seoul and other regions have been put up for public auction, with a combined minimum value of about 224 billion won. Woori's large-scale real estate divestment comes as the group pushes deeper into the insurance sector. Last August, it signed a deal to acquire a 75 percent stake in Tongyang Life Insurance and full ownership of ABL Life Insurance for a combined 1.5 trillion won. On May 2, the Financial Services Commission granted final approval to incorporate the two insurers as subsidiaries, conditional on the group significantly strengthening its financial soundness and internal controls. Woori aims to raise its Common Equity Tier 1 ratio — a key measure of capital adequacy — as it continues to trail peers. Its CET1 ratio stood at 12.42 percent at end-March, up from 12.08 percent at the end of 2024, but still below the 13-percent level maintained by Korea's three other major financial groups. The group is targeting a CET1 ratio above 13 percent by 2027, the deadline set by regulators as part of the conditional approval.
Korea Herald
18-03-2025
- Business
- Korea Herald
FSS puts brake on Woori's insurance push
Improper loan scandal holds back Woori's drive to expand its non-banking portfolio Woori Financial Group, South Korea's fourth-largest financial service provider, may face a holdup in its push to acquire new insurers, as the local regulator has reportedly downgraded its management evaluation rating in response to the issuance of improper loans worth over 200 billion won ($138 million). According to reports, the Financial Supervisory Service, the country's watchdog, has finalized its management evaluation for Woori Financial Group, downgrading the bank's rating by one notch under the five-tier system from the previous Grade 2 to Grade 3. It is the first time since 2004 that Woori Financial Group received a Grade 3 rating. The downgrade follows the discovery of a major loan scandal. In February, the FSS announced its audit showed that Woori Bank issued 101 improper loans worth 233.4 billion won. Of the total amount, loans worth 73 billion won were linked to former Woori Financial Group Chair Son Tae-seung. Son has been indicted by the prosecution. FSS Gov. Lee Bok-hyun warned Woori Financial is likely to be penalized for the incident, mentioning the responsibility of its incumbent chairman Yim Jong-ryong. "(The chairman) is downright responsible for major malpractice that happened during his term. I do not intend to compliment the lack of internal control or inappropriate governance,' Lee said at a press conference held in February. The downgrade could jeopardize Woori Financial's push to acquire Tongyang Life Insurance and ABL Life Insurance. The watchdog is to deliver its evaluation to the Financial Services Commission, in charge of handling the acquisition approval. Woori Financial could be deemed unqualified to acquire a new affiliate with a Grade 3 evaluation, under the regulator's supervisory provision for financial holding companies. In August 2024, the group signed stock purchase agreements for the two insurers and is awaiting approval from the FSC. Under the deal, Woori will secure a 75.34 percent stake in Tongyang at the price of 1.28 trillion won and complete ownership of ABL Life at 265 billion won. The FSC's decision is likely to be finalized by May at the earliest. If the deal falls through due to regulatory rejection, Woori Financial could face a penalty of around 150 billion won. Though Woori Financial has been rated Grade 3, the regulator could approve the acquisition on condition that Woori Financial pledges to improve its internal control and governance. For instance, Woori Financial's acquisition of LG Investment & Securities (now known as NH Investment & Securities) was approved in September 2004, though the financial service provider was rated Grade 3 at the time. Yet, industry officials remain skeptical of Woori Financial's decision to acquire the insurance duo owned by Chinese Anbang Insurance Group. 'Anbang Insurance Group may not be the most trustworthy business partner considering its reputation,' an official from the FSS said, referring to the Chinese insurance giant's lawsuit with local asset manager Mirae Asset Global Investments. In 2020, Mirae Asset agreed to buy US hotels from Anbang Insurance Group. The asset manager, however, did not close the deal, claiming Anbang had failed to carry out its prerequisite obligations under the contract. The Delaware Supreme Court ruled in favor of Mirae Asset the following year. 'It is hard to understand why Woori Financial decided to sign a deal with a partner that had issues with upholding its obligations,' the official said.
Korea Herald
09-02-2025
- Business
- Korea Herald
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.
