IBK chief underlines innovation on bank's anniversary

Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) Chairman and CEO Kim Sung-tae delivers a speech during a ceremony to mark the bank's 62nd founding anniversary at its headquarters in central Seoul, Tuesday. Courtesy of IBK

By Yi Whan-woo

Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) Chairman and CEO Kim Sung-tae addressed the need for innovation on the state-run lender's path to becoming a global top-notch banking firm, during its 62nd founding anniversary, Tuesday.

“IBK reached where it is now after taking the paths untaken and being faithfully committed to Korea's economic development over the past 62 years,” the chairman said during the ceremony at IBK headquarters in central Seoul.

The ceremony was attended by around 300 IBK employees, both executives and rank-and-file staffers.

He noted the bank's aggregate assets are “just a step away” from the milestone of 500 trillion won, and that the spirit of innovation is required more than ever to accomplish its goals and move forward.

“Under the circumstances, I ask you to focus on better serving customers and society, and at the same time enhancing the competitiveness of each one of us and the company itself,” Kim said.

The chairman accordingly suggested taking the initiative in the market, gaining customer trust and fulfilling corporate responsibility.

Specialized in lending business for small- and medium-sized enterprises, IBK accounted for 23.4 percent of the market for its targeted customer group in the second quarter of this year.

The bank's quarterly net profit in the April-June period totaled 667.1 billion won, up 27.5 percent from a year earlier.

Its net profit in the first half of the year also jumped 19.4 percent year-on-year to 1.39 trillion won.