Chairman Kim Kihong Announces Launch of Exclusive Platform Service
"Loan Target for Foreigners Set at 1 Trillion KRW This Year"
From Relaunching Products to Establishing a Customer Center
Complete Overhaul of Logo, App, and Card Design
Overseas Affiliates Also Developing New Products
JB Financial Group is busy strengthening its presence in foreigner finance. They are introducing various measures, including rebranding related businesses, developing platforms, and utilizing overseas affiliates. Jeonbuk Bank, which has steadily accumulated know-how in this field, will take the lead, with affiliates such as Gwangju Bank also joining in.
According to the financial sector on the 10th, JB Financial Group recently launched the first phase of the foreigner-exclusive platform ‘Bravo Korea’. Kim Ki-hong, chairman of JB Financial Group, announced this during the 2024 earnings conference call on the 6th, saying, “We have been preparing for a year.” This platform is the first in the domestic financial industry to comprehensively provide lifestyle information and financial services to foreigners residing in Korea. Chairman Kim explained that JB Financial Group plans to actively utilize this platform to further strengthen the position of its affiliates in the foreigner financial market.
Additionally, JB Financial Group stated that its total loan target for foreigners this year is 1 trillion KRW. Chairman Kim said, “Jeonbuk Bank’s foreigner loan balance was 400 billion KRW at the end of last year, and the target for the end of this year is about 800 billion KRW,” adding, “There is also Gwangju Bank and JB Woori Capital, which offers auto-secured loans to foreigners, and combined, it will be around 1 trillion KRW.”
To strengthen foreigner finance, JB Financial Group has relaunched related products and established a dedicated customer center. Jeonbuk Bank played a pioneering role in foreigner finance by executing the first non-face-to-face loans for foreign customers in the banking sector in 2016. Continuing to launch products, it introduced related deposit and savings products and check cards in September last year. Last month, it also created a parking account product that offers up to 3% interest if preferential conditions are met. It opened the ‘Bravo Korea Customer Center,’ the first dedicated center for foreign customers in the banking sector, located in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, the area with the highest foreign resident population in Korea.
JB Financial Group launched a foreigner-exclusive platform and redesigned the logo of its related business 'Bravo Korea,' as well as the card and application designs. 360Company website
They also undertook rebranding, including changing the logo. Through the branding company 360 Company, they completely redesigned the Bravo Korea logo, card, and app design. According to 360 Company, the new logo is based on lowercase letters, conveying a friendly and lively image. For the card, the design of the prepaid card, which can be charged and used after linking with the Bravo Korea app, was changed. The app design uses vivid colors and a designated typeface with high readability.
JB Financial also devised plans to attract foreign customers by utilizing overseas affiliates. Specifically, among JB Financial Group’s affiliates, Myanmar capital company JBCM is expected to launch related loan products. Chairman Kim said, “(JBCM) is continuing its microfinance (retail finance) business while planning a new loan business targeting foreign workers entering Korea from Myanmar,” adding, “They have prepared extensively and will start operations soon.”
Despite the challenging risk management characteristics of foreigner loans, they are fully prepared. Chairman Kim said there is no need to worry about risk management based on Jeonbuk Bank’s know-how, stating, “Before launching the Bravo Korea platform, we developed a foreigner-specialized retail model.” He added, “We have tested it multiple times and will utilize the foreigner-specialized credit loan model.”
The reason JB Financial is focusing on foreigner finance is that the number of foreigners residing in Korea has increased. The economically active foreign population is steadily growing, and their income and consumption are also rising. According to data from the Ministry of Justice and Statistics Korea, the economically active foreign population residing in Korea increased from 917,000 in 2020 to 975,000 in 2023. The average annual salary per foreigner rose from 29,257,000 KRW in 2020 to 31,797,000 KRW. According to Shinhan Card data, the average card usage amount per foreigner sharply increased from 3,913,631 KRW in 2019 to 5,150,360 KRW in 2023.
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