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| Toss Bank CEO Hong Min-taek, second from left, speaks during an online press conference held at the headquarters in southern Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of Toss Bank |
By Anna J. Park
Toss Bank, one of Korea's major internet-only banks, announced Wednesday that it has newly launched a joint deposit account product called the "gathering passbook," through which a group of people can jointly manage a shared account.
According to the bank during its online press conference in Seoul, the new account product allows every registered member of a joint account the same access and rights to a deposit account ― including cash withdrawals, deposits and payment settlement. Every member can also get their own debit card for the shared account. Previously the bank granted only one person from a group the right to control the account's withdrawals, payment settlements and card issuance.
"Toss Bank's philosophy is to provide a solution to problems where customers commonly feel and experience inconveniences," Toss Bank CEO Hong Min-taek said during the press conference. "The bank's newly launched group account is the result of a long process of exploration and review to solve inconveniences experienced by group joint account users."
There is no limit to the number of members for the group account. Everyone in the group can have the same access to the account's key features, as long as they have the consent of each member. Groups can also easily add new members. The passbook account can be used by various groups, including couples, for social gatherings, schoolmates and many other groups.
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| Toss Bank headquarters in southern Seoul / Courtesy of Toss Bank |
The group account product provides a 2.3 percent interest rate for a day's deposit. The account's debit card gets cashback benefits from some restaurants, sports facilities and retailers. The account users are also subject to year-end tax settlements.
Celebrating the launch of the product, the mobile-based bank is offering 10,000 won ($8.12) to group members who open up accounts before the end of March.
Currently, the group account is only available in Korean won. However, the bank CEO added that the plan is to innovate a product dedicated to foreign currency holders.
"As of now, the joint group account is only available in Korean won," Hong said during the press conference. "But the bank has been examining diverse innovative product opportunities in the realm of foreign currencies."
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