Park Han-sol reports on Korea's financial regulators, along with fintech and insurance. She previously wrote about the art world, from biennales and exhibitions to fairs and auctions, with a focus on Seoul and the figures shaping the scene. Before joining The Korea Times, she spent a year at ABC News' Seoul bureau, contributing to coverage of major Asia-Pacific events.
From concert tickets to delivery apps, banks diversify revenue beyond finance
A pedestrian walks past ATMs of major banks at a building in Seoul, April 12. Newsis
By Park Han-sol
As tighter government lending restrictions curb household loans and pressure traditional interest-driven profits, Korea’s major banks are looking beyond finance for growth, branching into lifestyle services to build new sources of non-interest income, according to industry officials Sunday.
From concert platforms to food delivery, banks are moving more aggressively into consumers’ everyday lives.
Woori Bank is the latest to join the shift, launching its cultural platform app TWOTHEMOON (2TM) last month.
Centered around Seoul’s trendsetting cultural hubs of Seongsu, Hongdae and Itaewon, the platform offers users access to performance listings alongside teaser videos, artist interviews and behind-the-scenes content.
To address one of the country’s most persistent ticketing frustrations, the bank also introduced traffic control systems and anti-bot safeguards designed to curb macro-driven bulk purchases.
The initiative extends beyond ticket sales. Woori is positioning 2TM as an alternative platform for emerging artists and smaller event organizers, offering independent booking infrastructure and promotional opportunities to those often overshadowed on dominant major ticketing platforms.
For the bank, the platform is a strategic business move. It is under growing pressure to expand fee-based revenue after first-quarter non-interest profit dropped 36.6 percent from a year earlier to 161 billion won ($109 million).
Hana Bank, meanwhile, is pursuing a different route by stepping into the food delivery market. Its partnership with Mukkebi has placed it in more direct competition with Shinhan Bank, whose Ddangyo platform already operates in the space.
The new partnership is aimed not only at platform expansion but also at supporting small-business owners burdened by inflation and labor costs.
Hana plans to pair the service with dedicated financial products for merchants. The bank also intends to broaden its ecosystem through services tailored to foreign residents and discount offers, while leveraging group platforms such as Hana 1Q, Hana Money and Hana EZ to expand its user base.
Offline engagement remains part of the strategy as well, with Hana strengthening grassroots marketing through merchant consultations and onboarding support for small-business owners.
These moves underscore a larger strategic pivot across Korea’s banking sector, an industry official said, adding that as traditional lending growth becomes more constrained, banks are increasingly reinventing themselves as lifestyle-focused platform businesses to secure future profitability.