Hana Bank hosts foreign exchange quiz for employees

Hana Bank employees participate in the 2023 Foreign Exchange Golden Bell National Competition held at the Hana Financial Group headquarters in Seoul, Friday. Courtesy of Hana Bank

Hana Bank held a quiz on foreign exchange to boost employee expertise.

According to the bank, it held the 2023 Foreign Exchange Golden Bell National Competition at Hana Financial Group's headquarters in downtown Seoul, Friday.

The bank has been holding the annual quiz contest for 18 years to enhance the foreign exchange knowledge and capabilities of its employees, as part of a tradition and festival for communication and harmony among its employees.

Regional preliminaries for the contest have been held since June, in Gwangju, Busan, Daejeon and Seoul, on top of the online preliminaries through Hana Bank's mobile app Hana One Q. The finals on Friday concluded the six-month-long journey.

The four online preliminaries showcased the fervent interest and passion of employees aspiring to become top foreign exchange specialists at Hana Bank, with up to 6,500 employees participating in a single session.

The finals featured problem-solving across a wide spectrum of foreign exchange areas such as foreign exchange laws, products and services, imports and exports, and foreign exchange dealing. A total of 100 outstanding foreign exchange employees selected from the preliminaries competed in the quiz, representing their regions and branches.

After an intense competition, Seo Jeong-eun from the bank’s Gumi-dong branch in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, claimed the gold medal and a prize of 1 million won ($760).

“It is so honorable to become a gold medalist of the competition,” Seo said.

“I am thankful to my colleagues at the branch and the sales group for their generous support while I prepared for the finals. I will strive continuously as a foreign exchange expert to provide more professional and differentiated foreign exchange services to our customers,” she added.

Hana Bank CEO Lee Seung-lyul expressed his gratitude and encouragement to employees who consistently study and develop themselves for the bank's success.

“I hope the golden bell festival serves to cast a spotlight once again on Hana Bank's strength in the foreign exchange business. I will continue to provide unwavering support to ensure it becomes a tradition where all employees enjoy and unite together,” he said.