Banks in South Korea

The Korean banking sector consists of about 140 banks including 54 commercial banks, 79 mutual savings banks and 5 specialized banks which offer different services to a niche segment of clients. The commercial banks include 6 nationwide banks, 6 local banks and 42 branches of foreign banks. The Top 10 Korean banks hold combined assets of approximately US$2.5 trillion.

Bank of Korea – The central bank of South Korea founded on June 12, 1950 under the Bank of Korea Act. The primary purpose of BOK is to pursue price stability.

Busan Bank – A regional bank providing a complete range of financial services for personal customers. The main shareholders are Aberdeen Asset Management Asia, Lotte group, National Pension Service, Capital Research & Global Investors, Parkland and Templeton.

iM Financial Group – A South Korean banking holding company, established in May 2011 as DGB Financial Group and headquartered in Daegu. Its flagship company, iM Bank, was formerly Daegu Bank, a regional bank serving the Daegu-Gyeongbuk region; it is now listed by the Korea Federation of Banks among South Korea’s nationwide commercial banks rather than among the regional banks.

Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) provides commercial banking services to small and mid-sized companies. The Bank leads South Korea in small business loans, which represents approximately 81% of its lending portfolio. IBK is majority-owned by the South Korean government and is one of the country’s five specialized banks.

Hana Financial Group – One of South Korea’s leading banking groups and the parent of Hana Bank.

Korea Exchange Bank (KEB) was the fifth largest Korean commercial bank in terms of local banking deposits. It was acquired by Hana Financial Group and merged with Hana Bank in 2015.

Hana Bank – Formed through the merger of Korea Exchange Bank (KEB) and Hana Bank on September 1, 2015, initially under the name KEB Hana Bank; the KEB prefix was later dropped. It is the banking subsidiary of Hana Financial Group and one of South Korea’s nationwide commercial banks.

KakaoBank – An internet-primary bank and a full member of the Korea Federation of Banks.

Kbank – An internet-primary bank and a full member of the Korea Federation of Banks.

Toss Bank – An internet-primary bank and a full member of the Korea Federation of Banks.

KB Kookmin Bank – The largest retail bank in South Korea. It has the most extensive branch network and the largest customer base in Korea. KB maintains the biggest market share in deposits and loans and has the highest rating of AAA from two local credit rating agencies, National Information & Credit Evaluation and Korean Investors Service Inc.

Korea Development Bank (KDB) – A wholly state-owned bank. It was founded in 1954 in accordance with Korea Development Bank Act to finance and manage major industrial projects and enhance the national economy.

Kwangju Bank – A regional bank located in Kwangju city, Korea. It provides a wide range of financial services for SMEs and individuals. It offers deposit products, loans, credit cards, insurance, foreign currency exchange, online banking and other services.

Korea International Merchant  – Korea International Merchant Bank merged with KEB on 1 January 1999.

Nonghyup Bank – The Bank for Korean farmers. It operates as a subsidiary of NongHyup Financial Group.

Shinhan Bank – One of the largest banks in South Korea with over 18 million customers and 900 branches nationwide. It is the main subsidiary of Shinhan Financial Group.

The Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM) – One of Korea’s three policy banks. It is an official export credit agency providing export credit and guarantee programs to support the international business development of Korean companies. The bank has 10 local branches and 12 overseas offices.

Woori Bank – One of the largest commercial banks in the country with over 20 million customers, 15,800 employees and about $280 billion in assets.

Top Banks in South Korea

  Total assets (KRW trillion), December 2011 to June 2017

* BNK Financial Group was formerly known as BS Financial Group.