By Jhoo Dong-chan
KB Financial Group will launch an asset management unit through KB Asset Management in China next week as part of efforts to strengthen its foothold abroad, an industry source said Thursday.
"KB Asset Management will establish a corporate body in Shanghai in a week or so," said a source close to the matter asking for anonymity.
"KB Financial and its subsidiaries have eagerly looked for opportunities abroad. KB Asset Management's move to expand its foothold into China is part of such efforts," the source added.
The source said that group Chairman & CEO Yoon Jong-kyoo will attend the opening ceremony to spur KB's globalization drive in the rapidly-growing wealth management market.
A KB Financial Group official declined to comment about the group's move, but admitted that Yoon will visit the country soon.
"It hasn't been fully confirmed yet, but Yoon is likely to visit China soon. However, there is nothing to comment on about KB Asset Management's move to establish a corporate body there at this point," he said.
An official from KB Asset Management said, "It is true that we have planned to open a corporate body in China but we can't reveal any details at the moment."
The move is part of Yoon's efforts to expand the group's business portfolio into foreign markets.
Starting this year, the CEO has stressed the importance of diversifying the group's business portfolio and expanding its overseas presence under his business strategy, "RACE 2018."
Spearheading KB's vision, the group's banking subsidiary KB Kookmin Bank has made inroads into Southeast Asian markets, including Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos.
The group is now fixing its eyes on India, Indonesia and Vietnam as well as China. KB Kookmin Bank acquired a 22 percent stake in Indonesia's Bank Bukopin in July.
This marks the bank's re-entrance into Indonesia 10 years since it exited from the Southeast Asian country by selling off its stake in BII Bank to Malaysia's Maybank in 2008.
Also in July, the financial group signed an MOU with India's state-run Bank of Baroda to cooperate in the private, corporate and trade finance sectors as well as in card and mobile payments. The lender is the second-largest bank in India with 52,000 employees at its 5,400 branches
Following Yoon's initiative, KB Asset Management co-CEO Cho Jae-min has long studied the Chinese market to expand the firm's presence there.
"We will form a strategic partnership with global leaders such as Vanguard and PIMCO to satisfy various customer needs in the global equity fund market," Cho said.
Separate from Cho's role, the firm's other CEO, Lee Hyun-seung, is in charge of alternative overseas investment markets.
The company's total assets under management reached 52.78 trillion won in July, and it posted 27.2 billion won in operating profits in the first half of the year with a return on equity of 30.71 percent.
The firm's foray into the Chinese market comes amid its handsome performance in fund management. The KB China High-dividend Fund has recorded a cumulative return of over 30 percent since its launch.
KB Financial Group will launch an asset management unit through KB Asset Management in China next week as part of efforts to strengthen its foothold abroad, an industry source said Thursday.
"KB Asset Management will establish a corporate body in Shanghai in a week or so," said a source close to the matter asking for anonymity.
"KB Financial and its subsidiaries have eagerly looked for opportunities abroad. KB Asset Management's move to expand its foothold into China is part of such efforts," the source added.
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| KB Financial Group Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo |
A KB Financial Group official declined to comment about the group's move, but admitted that Yoon will visit the country soon.
"It hasn't been fully confirmed yet, but Yoon is likely to visit China soon. However, there is nothing to comment on about KB Asset Management's move to establish a corporate body there at this point," he said.
An official from KB Asset Management said, "It is true that we have planned to open a corporate body in China but we can't reveal any details at the moment."
The move is part of Yoon's efforts to expand the group's business portfolio into foreign markets.
Starting this year, the CEO has stressed the importance of diversifying the group's business portfolio and expanding its overseas presence under his business strategy, "RACE 2018."
Spearheading KB's vision, the group's banking subsidiary KB Kookmin Bank has made inroads into Southeast Asian markets, including Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos.
The group is now fixing its eyes on India, Indonesia and Vietnam as well as China. KB Kookmin Bank acquired a 22 percent stake in Indonesia's Bank Bukopin in July.
This marks the bank's re-entrance into Indonesia 10 years since it exited from the Southeast Asian country by selling off its stake in BII Bank to Malaysia's Maybank in 2008.
Also in July, the financial group signed an MOU with India's state-run Bank of Baroda to cooperate in the private, corporate and trade finance sectors as well as in card and mobile payments. The lender is the second-largest bank in India with 52,000 employees at its 5,400 branches
Following Yoon's initiative, KB Asset Management co-CEO Cho Jae-min has long studied the Chinese market to expand the firm's presence there.
"We will form a strategic partnership with global leaders such as Vanguard and PIMCO to satisfy various customer needs in the global equity fund market," Cho said.
Separate from Cho's role, the firm's other CEO, Lee Hyun-seung, is in charge of alternative overseas investment markets.
The company's total assets under management reached 52.78 trillion won in July, and it posted 27.2 billion won in operating profits in the first half of the year with a return on equity of 30.71 percent.
The firm's foray into the Chinese market comes amid its handsome performance in fund management. The KB China High-dividend Fund has recorded a cumulative return of over 30 percent since its launch.
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