Yuanta Securities and Meritz Capital Downgraded to 'Weak'
9 Companies Causing Social Controversy Including Institutional Sanctions Downgraded... Rated 'Below Satisfactory' or Lower
Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance, KB Insurance, and Hyundai Capital received the highest rating of 'Good' in the financial consumer protection performance evaluation. On the other hand, Kyongnam Bank, Kookmin Bank, Hana Bank, iM Bank, Kiwoom Securities, Hanwha Investment & Securities, and Shinhan Card, which caused private controversies due to institutional sanctions related to consumer protection and incomplete sales, were downgraded to ratings ranging from Average to Poor. Yuanta Securities and Meritz Capital fell from Poor to Vulnerable ratings.
On the 16th, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) announced that out of 74 companies subject to evaluation, 26 companies were evaluated this year for financial consumer protection performance, with 3 companies rated Good, 14 Average, 7 Poor, and 2 Vulnerable. From this year, the FSS improved the evaluation system to focus not only on the basic internal control system but also on the actual operation of the internal control system.
Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance, KB Insurance, and Hyundai Capital were relatively well evaluated for actively reflecting consumer opinions during product development, operating a solid complaint monitoring system, and making efforts to improve accessibility for vulnerable groups.
Yuanta Securities, which experienced a system failure during the public offering subscription, received a Vulnerable rating due to a large volume of complaints and delayed processing. Meritz Capital, a new evaluation target, was rated Vulnerable due to inadequate consumer protection systems related to product development, sales, and performance reward system operation.
An FSS official explained, "While the quantitative part was generally good, in the non-quantitative part, although the basic internal control system related to consumer protection was in place, most financial companies had cases where the internal control system operation was partially inadequate. Operation of the performance reward system, internal control self-inspection, and operation of consumer protection-related organizations and personnel require more active improvement."
By section, 18 companies, about 70% of the total, received 'Good' or higher ratings in the quantitative part, indicating that many financial companies received good evaluations. Kiwoom Securities, which had relatively fewer complaints, was rated 'Excellent,' while Yuanta Securities, which had a large number of complaints due to a system failure related to the 2022 public offering subscription, was rated 'Poor.'
In the non-quantitative part, although the basic internal control system was in place, there were cases where the operation of the internal control system was partially inadequate, so most were rated 'Average.' By evaluation item, all financial companies received 'Average' or higher ratings (15 companies rated 'Good' or higher) for 'Provision of consumer information and prevention of damage to vulnerable groups,' showing generally good levels. However, for 'Operation of performance reward system and consumer protection education,' 8 companies received 'Poor' or lower ratings (only 1 company rated 'Good' or higher), resulting in generally low evaluations.
An FSS official said, "The results of the financial consumer protection performance evaluation will be notified to financial companies and disclosed on individual financial company websites. For parts evaluated as poor, improvement plans will be submitted and managed afterward. For Yuanta Securities and Meritz Capital, which received overall ratings of 'Poor' or lower, detailed guidance on improvements and supplements will be provided through feedback procedures to encourage company-wide improvement efforts."
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