Anna Jiwon Park has been covering the politics at The Korea Times since the summer of 2024, when she joined the press pool for the Office of the President in Korea. Prior to that, she spent about five years reporting extensively on financial markets, regulatory authorities and the financial industry. She joined The Korea Times in 2019 after spending eight years as a broadcast journalist at Arirang TV, Korea’s leading global broadcaster, covering politics, defense and culture.
K bank posts 41.4 percent jump in quarterly net profit in Q2
The headquarters of K bank in central Seoul / Courtesy of K bank
By Anna J. Park
By Anna J. Park
K bank has achieved a net profit of 14.7 billion won ($11 million) during the second quarter of this year, due mainly to expanded business operations as well as diversified loan portfolios. This marks a whopping 41.4 percent increase in net profit from the previous quarter, maintaining profitability for the ninth consecutive quarter since the second quarter of 2021.
According to the internet-only bank on Monday, the number of customers as of the end of the second quarter stood at 8.9 million, an increase of 190,000 customers from 8.71 million recorded at the end of the first quarter. The bank's outstanding loan balance rose to 17.3 trillion won, a 4.4 percent jump compared to the end of the previous quarter, while the deposit balance increased to 12.6 trillion won, up 6.1 percent over the same period.
The bank explained that the impressive quarterly growth in its loans is led by its apartment-exclusive mortgage loan products. With its competitive advantages in interest rate cuts, the bank attracted 900 billion won worth of new apartment-exclusive mortgage loans during the second quarter. With the feat, housing collateral loans now take up 29.1 percent of the digital bank's loan portfolio, a significant increase from the 21.3 percent share at the end of last year.
As a result, K bank's interest profit reached 106.8 billion won in the second quarter, a 19.9 percent year-on-year increase. The bank's non-interest profit also more than tripled to 7.4 billion won, compared to the same quarter last year.
“During the second quarter, the bank focused on diversifying its revenue structure through growth in stable housing mortgage loans,” CEO Suh Ho-sung said. “The bank will actively practice inclusive finance through the expansion of loans for low- and medium-credit customers, while launching various new services, such as vehicle loans and group savings accounts, aiming to become a bank that grows together with its customers.”