More Than Triple Increase from 2.19 Million at the End of Last Year
Significant Growth in Customers Under 20 and Over 50
[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] The number of customers who have signed up for the internet-only bank K-Bank has surpassed 7 million. Customers have been increasing at a rate of one every 6 seconds. While customers in their 30s and 40s were overwhelmingly dominant, the proportion of customers aged 20 and under and those aged 50 and above has increased, diversifying the age groups even further.
According to the banking sector on the 2nd, the number of K-Bank customers as of the previous day exceeded 7 million. Considering that the number of customers at the end of last year was 2.19 million, it increased by 4.8 million in 11 months, more than tripling.
K-Bank saw an acceleration in new customer growth, with 300,000 new customers in 2019 and 1 million last year, resulting in one new customer every 6 seconds this year. Along with customer expansion, K-Bank's loans doubled from 2.99 trillion KRW at the end of last year to 6.83 trillion KRW at the end of last month, and deposits surged more than threefold from 3.75 trillion KRW to 11.87 trillion KRW.
In addition to the partnership effect with Upbit, various new products and a user environment specialized for mobile led to the increase in customers. In particular, with the recent base rate hikes, a large influx of 'money move' funds?capital rapidly shifting to competitive financial products?occurred. The jeonse (key money deposit) loan launched in August, which offers 100% non-face-to-face service and no early repayment fees, exceeded 200 billion KRW within three months of its launch.
The parking account 'Plus Box,' which offers an interest rate of 0.8% even if deposited for just one day, attracted over 1 trillion KRW by the end of the third quarter, about a year after its launch in July last year. In April, K-Bank started the 'Account Splitting' service, allowing customers to use Plus Box accounts separately by purpose. It was estimated that about 30,000 customers are using two or more Plus Box accounts.
The user base has also expanded significantly. While 6 out of 10 customers were in their 30s or 40s, customers aged 50 and above increased by about 800,000 this year alone, raising their proportion from 14.65% at the end of last year to 15.70%. The proportion of customers aged 20 and under also expanded from 28.04% to 31.11%.
Seo Hoseong, CEO of K-Bank, said, "The increase in the number of customers is the result of our efforts to improve the user environment and develop various new products being recognized by customers," adding, "We will continue to strive to provide more benefits to our customers."
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