KakaoBank Reports Record Q2 Net Profit, Commits to Continued Inclusive Finance

Q2 Net Profit of 120.2 Billion KRW
Surges 46.7% Year-on-Year
First Half Also Records All-Time High Net Profit

KakaoBank's net profit for the second quarter and the first half of the year both recorded all-time high results.

KakaoBank announced on the 7th that its net profit for the second quarter increased by 46.7% year-on-year to 120.2 billion KRW. The net profit for the first half of the year grew by 25.9% year-on-year to 231.4 billion KRW.

Interest income for the first half reached 1.1811 trillion KRW, up 24.8% compared to 946.1 billion KRW in the first half of last year. Non-interest income increased by 19% from 227.7 billion KRW to 270.9 billion KRW during the same period.

KakaoBank explained that these results were achieved based on continuous strengthening of the customer base, balanced growth across all sectors including banking and platform businesses, and inclusive finance.

As of the first half, KakaoBank's deposit balance was recorded at 53.4 trillion KRW. The proportion of low-cost deposits was 56.9%, significantly exceeding the banking sector average of 38.5%.

The loan balance stood at 42.6 trillion KRW. The mortgage loan balance was 12.44 trillion KRW, increasing by 657 billion KRW compared to the previous quarter, showing a significant slowdown in growth. In the first quarter, the increase was 2.645 trillion KRW compared to the previous quarter. This is a result of financial authorities managing the recent rise in household debt and KakaoBank's participation in the government's household debt management policy.

Among the total credit loans handled by KakaoBank, the proportion of medium- and low-credit loans accounted for about half. At the end of the first half, KakaoBank's average balance and proportion of medium- and low-credit loans were approximately 4.7 trillion KRW and 32.5%, respectively, marking an all-time high.

KakaoBank's delinquency rate in the second quarter was 0.48%, a 0.01 percentage point increase from 0.47% in the previous quarter. The net interest margin (NIM) was recorded at 2.17%, and the cost-to-income ratio (CIR) improved from 37.3% at the end of last year to 35.4%.

As of the end of June, KakaoBank's customer base reached 24.03 million, with about 1.2 million new customers added in the first half alone. With the increase in customers, KakaoBank's fee and platform income for the first half rose by 9.8% year-on-year to 141.7 billion KRW.

Global expansion is also progressing smoothly. 'SuperBank,' an Indonesian digital bank in which KakaoBank made a strategic equity investment, secured about 800,000 customers within a month after its official launch to the public in June. Going forward, KakaoBank plans to actively participate in the planning and development of SuperBank's products and services to strengthen its global capabilities in the Southeast Asian market and beyond.

A KakaoBank representative said, "Despite the uncertain and highly volatile external environment, we continue to achieve stable growth," adding, "We will establish a 'corporate value enhancement plan' that includes sustainable growth and shareholder returns and disclose it in the fourth quarter."