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| Korea Times file |
By Yi Whan-woo
Executives of the country's four major banks ― KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana and Woori ― received bonuses worth 108.3 billion won ($82.6 million) between 2020 and May this year, data showed Wednesday.
The banks already face growing criticism for reaping hefty profits over hikes on the key interest rate, while low-income borrowers are struggling to repay their debts.
Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) data, submitted to Rep. Kim Jong-min of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), showed that Woori Bank paid the highest amount of bonuses totaling 34.7 billion won, followed by 25.4 billion won by KB Kookmin, 25.4 billion won by Shinhan Bank and 18.3 billion won by Hana Bank.
The number of recipients stood at 455 employees at Woori, 238 at Shinhan, 218 at KB Kookmin and 136 at Hana.
"It is regrettable to find out the private banks have been paying out huge bonuses while many borrowers are burdened with soaring interest rates," Rep. Kim said.
He urged financial authorities to step up efforts to have the banks narrow the gap between lenders' rates for loans and deposits. "The National Assembly will join such efforts to overhaul laws and policies if necessary," he said.
The parent companies of the four banks all earned record interest income in the first half of this year.
KB Financial Group posted a net interest income of 5.44 trillion won, up 18.7 percent from a year earlier.
The net interest income of Shinhan Financial Group increased 17.3 percent year-on-year to 5.13 trillion won, while that of Hana Financial Group jumped 18 percent to 4.19 trillion won and Woori Financial Group 23.5 percent to 4.13 trillion won.
