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| Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo, left, shakes hands with SK Telecom CEO Ryu Young-sang, after signing a strategic partnership at the latter's headquarters in Seoul, Friday. Courtesy of Hana Financial Group |
By Lee Min-hyung
Hana Financial Group has clinched a strategic partnership with SK Telecom to develop new business models in finance that use state-of-the-art technologies.
Both companies exchanged shares worth 400 billion won ($305 million), as part of their first step to carry out a broader range of joint projects, they said Sunday, amid the government's push for policies that increasingly allow the financial and non-financial areas to converge.
The nation's largest mobile carrier acquired Hana Financial shares worth 330 billion won. This move made SK Telecom secure a 3.1-percent stake in the financial holding firm as of closing on Friday. In response, Hana Card, a 100-percent subsidiary of Hana Financial Group, also purchased SK Telecom shares worth 68.4 billion won.
The strategic alliance is expected to speed up their joint drive in the digital transformation of finance. Hana Financial aims to innovate its financial services by taking advantage of SK Telecom's expertise in artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing.
They plan to launch a series of fresh services, such as AI Contact Center, where an AI chatbot will communicate with customers so that they can receive updated investment information in real-time. Hana is also considering launching special financial products, such as credit cards or insurance offering benefits for SK Telecom customers.
SK Telecom shared its plans to open an online sales office for Hana on a metaverse platform operated by the mobile carrier.
With regards to environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) management, they also reached a consensus to create more social value by making more investments in promising startups and projects for young people.
"Hana Financial Group and SK Telecom will build our own ESG ecosystem where the socially vulnerable, startups and teenagers can prosper together," an official from Hana said. "We will carry out a series of programs to create more social value by utilizing our capability in finance and technology."
For instance, the two companies plan to jointly run a financial education program for teenagers on a metaverse platform. They will also offer a series of startup investment programs.
"Hana Financial Group and SK Telecom will expand our scope of partnerships in not just digital transformation but also in ESG," Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo said.
Ham stood at the center of Hana's digital transformation even before taking office as the new chairman of the financial group in March. He has underscored the importance of the group preemptively embracing its own digital strategy called "Beyond Finance" since he was Hana's vice chairman.
SK Telecom CEO Ryu Young-sang said, "The partnership will be a major turning point driving an innovation in value for customers." He also pledged to increase the positive influence of both companies across society by taking part in diverse ESG-related activities.
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