[Exclusive] NongHyup Bank Introduces One-Person Branch Manager System... Strengthening Productive Finance

PRM System Adopted Following iM Bank and Woori Bank
Incentives for Corporate Lending Aligned with Productive Finance
NongHyup Bank Revamps Loan Review Process
Chairman Lee Chanwoo Urges "Active and Aggressive" Approach

NH NongHyup Bank is accelerating its corporate lending business by introducing the PRM (Professional Relationship Manager) system, which involves rehiring retired bankers to take charge of loan sales. In addition, the bank is also revamping its loan review system to strengthen its commitment to productive finance.

According to the financial sector on December 2, NongHyup Bank will implement the PRM system starting in mid-January. The bank plans to hire around 30 individuals, recruiting both internal retirees and former branch managers from outside the organization. While performance-based incentives will be provided, the bank is also considering offering greater rewards for corporate lending achievements that align with productive finance.

The PRM system was first introduced by iM Bank (formerly Daegu Bank) and has proven successful. In 2019, then DGB Financial Group Chairman Kim Taeoh (who also served as Daegu Bank CEO) recruited former branch managers who had retired from commercial banks to drive corporate sales in new regions. These PRMs operate as one-person branch managers without being assigned to a specific branch, conducting outbound sales by proactively reaching out to clients for loan origination. They are hired on a performance-based salary system. According to iM Bank, the outstanding loan balance associated with PRMs in the third quarter of this year was 4.7098 trillion won, a 34.7% increase from 3.4956 trillion won in the third quarter of last year. Their efficiency also surpasses that of traditional branches. For example, while a branch spent 3.336 billion won on personnel and rental costs to handle 200 billion won in loans, the PRM team, with 22 members and an operating cost of 3.3 billion won, handled 627 billion won in loans. In response, Woori Bank is also reported to have launched its own PRM system in September, hiring about 20 staff members.

Eom Eulyong, Executive Vice President of Corporate Finance at NongHyup Bank (from left), Yoon Byungwoon, CEO of NH Investment & Securities, Lee Chanwoo, Chairman of NongHyup Financial Group, Hwang Jongyeon, Executive Vice President of Business Strategy at NongHyup Financial Group, and Lee Jaeho, Executive Vice President of Strategic Planning, are taking a commemorative photo related to the promotion of the "NH Win-Win Growth Project." NongHyup Financial Group

NongHyup Bank is also overhauling its systems to strengthen productive finance. In corporate loan reviews, the bank is shifting from a system where a single credit officer makes decisions at the preliminary review stage to a consultative approach involving related departments such as the credit review and planning departments, thereby providing more proactive support for sales. NongHyup Bank expects that this will reduce arbitrary decisions by individual credit officers and enable faster and more flexible support for corporate loans. The bank is also considering offering benefits such as lower interest rates to companies that apply for loans through "The Quicker," its non-face-to-face corporate finance system launched in November.

These initiatives are being driven by Lee Chanwoo, Chairman of NongHyup Financial Group, and Kang Taeyoung, President of NongHyup Bank. Chairman Lee established a Special Committee on Productive Finance under his direct supervision and reportedly encouraged, "Let’s not be passive, but pursue this actively and aggressively." NongHyup Financial Group plans to allocate 93 trillion won to productive finance and 15 trillion won to inclusive finance out of a total of 108 trillion won. Chairman Lee personally oversees the expansion of productive finance and the cooperation system among subsidiaries. Since October, NongHyup Financial Group has been operating a dedicated organization for the activation of productive finance, with plans to invest 93 trillion won in this area over the next five years. Of this, 15 trillion won will go to the venture capital and equity division, 68 trillion won to the investment and loan division, and 10 trillion won to the National Growth Fund division. The heads of each division are Yoon Byungwoon, CEO of NH Investment & Securities; Eom Eulyong, Executive Vice President of Corporate Finance at NongHyup Bank; and Hwang Jongyeon, Executive Vice President of Business Strategy at NongHyup Financial Group. President Kang is said to have directly ordered the aforementioned overhaul of the loan review system.

Eom Eulyong, Executive Vice President, commented on the bank’s productive finance investments, stating, "We will actively support national growth industries and shift the bank’s business model from collateral-based household lending to supporting promising growth companies of the future, thereby seeking to expand the bank’s business as well."