Major savings banks are experiencing shifts in their net profit leadership. SBI Savings Bank, which held the top position for a decade, ceded its spot to OK Savings Bank last year and, in the first quarter of this year, was surpassed by Korea Investment Savings Bank. For the first half of the year, OK Savings Bank has reclaimed the lead.
According to management disclosures and interim review reports from each bank on September 1, OK Savings Bank reported a net profit of 229.1 billion won for the first half of the year, followed by Korea Investment Savings Bank with 153 billion won and SBI Savings Bank with 37.6 billion won. In the same period last year, SBI led with 56.2 billion won, ahead of OK's 33.1 billion won and Korea Investment's 21.8 billion won.
In the first quarter of this year, Korea Investment took the top spot with a net profit of 98 billion won. However, OK Savings Bank surged in the second quarter with approximately 147.1 billion won in net profit, allowing it to take the lead for the first half.
SBI maintained its position as the top net profit earner from 2015 to 2024 but lost its lead to OK last year. Its net profit for the first half of this year also decreased by 33.1% compared to the same period last year, widening the gap with its competitors.
The performance differences stemmed from securities management and loan loss provisions rather than interest income. OK's gains from securities evaluation and disposal increased from 52.1 billion won in the first half of last year to 241.9 billion won this year. Korea Investment also saw a significant rise from 8.3 billion won to 137.5 billion won. Both banks experienced a decline in interest income but benefited from expanded securities-related profits and reduced loan loss provisions, leading to increased net profits. In contrast, SBI's performance declined due to reduced interest income and profits from the sale of loan receivables.
In terms of financial soundness, SBI fared relatively well. As of the end of June, its delinquency rate was 4.52%, compared to OK's 6.58% and Korea Investment's 8.57%. SBI also had the lowest ratio of non-performing loans at 6.36% among the three banks. Although SBI was incorporated into Kyobo Life Insurance this year, it has yet to show significant synergy effects in its performance.
A source in the savings bank industry noted, “In a situation where the capacity for loan expansion is limited, differences in performance among companies can widen significantly due to securities management, the resolution of non-performing loans, and the burden of provisions. There is a possibility that changes in net profit rankings will continue for the time being.”
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.