Woori Bank's General Household Loans Drop by Over 2 Trillion Won in August... All-In on Productive Finance

General Household Loans Expected to Decline Year-on-Year in Q3
Lim Jongryong: "We Are Reducing General Household Loans"
Proportion of Rental Business Loans in Corporate Lending Reduced Below 30%
Group-Wide Focus on 'Productive Finance' Across All Affiliates

Exterior view of Woori Bank.

Woori Bank's general household loans for the third quarter of this year (excluding policy loans) are expected to decrease compared to last year. Instead, the bank plans to expand corporate lending to adjust its asset portfolio and strengthen its commitment to 'productive finance.'

According to Woori Bank on October 4, general household loans in August stood at 115.3485 trillion won, down 2.1666 trillion won (1.8%) from 117.5151 trillion won in the same month last year. In contrast, policy loans increased from 25.5913 trillion won to 32.1532 trillion won during the same period.

The decline in general household loans has become more pronounced in the second half of this year. As of the third quarter (July to September 25), general household loans amounted to 346.0659 trillion won, a decrease of 4.6173 trillion won (1.3%) compared to 350.6832 trillion won in the same period last year.

This trend is attributed to the financial authorities' June 27 loan regulations and the emphasis on productive finance. On September 29, Lim Jongryong, Chairman of Woori Financial Group, stated at the 'Future Co-Growth Project CEO Joint Briefing,' "We are reducing general household loans, excluding policy loans," and added, "We can redirect this capacity to productive finance."

Changes are also underway in the corporate lending sector. Since last year, Woori Bank has been rebalancing its portfolio by reducing the proportion of loans to the rental business and increasing loans to the manufacturing sector. Currently, loans to the rental business account for about 30% of corporate lending-still higher than other banks-but this share is being gradually reduced.

From the second half of this year, the bank is also reducing the proportion of general household loans, which have provided stable interest margins, and placing greater emphasis on expanding corporate lending. The plan is to raise the proportion of corporate loans from the current 50% to 60%.

Woori Financial Group has strengthened the weighting of 'productive and inclusive finance' in the performance evaluation indicators of its subsidiaries to support the expansion of corporate lending at the group level. In particular, for the bank, the weighting is set at 30%, which is about twice the average for other affiliates.

A Woori Bank official stated, "Finance centered on household and mortgage loans has reached its limits," and added, "Based on the business capabilities that Woori Financial Group has accumulated, we will take the lead in driving productive finance."