By Kim Jae-kyoung
Staff Reporter
As the prolonged economic slowdown turns into a certainty from a mere possibility, local banks are tightening their purse strings in a desperate bid to tide over the current economic turmoil.
Belt-tightening is increasingly the order of the day for local bankers, meaning dining out less, saving energy, recycling office supplies and using secondhand goods, among other things.
Kim Ki-rin, a deputy manager at Woori Bank, said that the deepening economic slump has changed his lifestyle, not only at home but also at work.
``First of all, most of our departments have decided not to dine out for our year-end gatherings. Instead, we plan to have a tea party in the office,'' Kim said. ``This is a voluntary move among bank employees to reduce costs.''
``Also, many bank employees working on lower floors take the stairs to save energy and we try not to use color printers to cut expenses,'' he added. ``The bank management did not push employees. Now employees themselves feel the crunch of tightening belts.''
Kim also said that to cut costs for document deliveries, the lender tries to use the normal postal service while avoiding the use of door-to-door express delivery, unless there is an emergency. The state-run lender prohibits even sending flowers or orchids to congratulate colleagues on promotions.
Woori Bank cut its expenditure by 20 percent in November and December and plans to reduce costs by 10 percent next year.
Shinhan Bank also decided to call off year-end departmental dinners in order to cut costs. Instead, Shinhan CEO Shin Sang-hoon plans to send messages to employees through the internal public announcement system on the last day of the year.
Kookmin Bank, the nation's largest lender, recently made a booklet containing the top 20 cost-saving task lists and has distributed them to employees. Among its tips are not sending orchids to fellow employees, not using color printers and saving energy.
Hana Bank has decided to replace a New Year's card for VIP customers with an email card. In addition, the lender is providing used items when there is a request for new office equipment.
Korea Exchange Bank has also planned to cut its expenditure by 30 to 40 percent next year.
``Industry-wide, banks are looking at all possible ways to tighten their belts on expectation that their profitability will get worse next year in the midst of the deepening economic slump,'' another bank official said.
Local banks' profitability has been worsening, with their combined net profits for the first nine months falling 36 percent to 8.4 trillion won year-on-year.