SC Jeil Bank's Net Profit Last Year 331.1 Billion KRW... 5.6% Decrease YoY

Year-End Dividend of 232 Billion KRW

SC First Bank announced on the 14th that it recorded a net profit of 331.1 billion KRW last year. This is a decrease of 19.5 billion KRW (5.6%) compared to the same period last year (350.6 billion KRW). SC First Bank explained that this was due to a one-time non-operating expense arising from the estimated compensation amount (103 billion KRW) for the Hong Kong H-Share Index (Hang Seng China Enterprises Index·HSCEI) ELS product, despite thorough cost management and a decrease in the provision for loan losses.

Interest income (1.2321 trillion KRW) decreased by 4.7% compared to the same period last year due to a reduction in customer loans and deposits, despite an improvement in net interest margin (NIM). Non-interest income (338.3 billion KRW) increased by 9.6% compared to the same period last year, supported by an increase in sales commissions in the asset management division of the retail finance group.

Operating expenses decreased by 60.5 billion KRW (6.2%) compared to the same period last year (974.2 billion KRW) thanks to thorough management and cost-saving efforts. The provision for loan losses recorded 128.4 billion KRW, down 28.1 billion KRW (18.0%) from the same period last year (156.5 billion KRW).

Last year, the asset size was 85.8409 trillion KRW, similar to the end of December last year (85.7008 trillion KRW). The return on assets (ROA) rose by 0.02 percentage points to 0.38% compared to the same period last year, while the return on equity (ROE) fell by 0.47 percentage points to 6.09%. The ratio of non-performing loans was 0.42%, up 0.03 percentage points from the same period last year, and the loan loss coverage ratio recorded 206.43%, down 19.0 percentage points compared to the same period last year.

Meanwhile, SC First Bank resolved a year-end dividend of 232 billion KRW at the regular board meeting on the 14th and submitted it as an agenda item for the regular shareholders' meeting scheduled for the 31st. Even after the dividend, the BIS total capital ratio (CAR) and BIS common equity tier 1 capital ratio (CET1) as of the end of last year stood at 19.73% and 16.07%, respectively, continuously exceeding regulatory requirements and maintaining sufficient loss absorption capacity and capital soundness.

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