Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo stressed in his New Year’s address that an accelerating money shift from bank deposits to capital market products requires a fundamental change. Ham also emphasized a need for innovation that will revolutionize the financial sector.
“An exodus of Individual Retirement Pension (IRP) accounts to securities firms has become routine, and the emergence of new products, including Integrated Management Accounts (IMAs) is no longer favorable for banks,” Ham said on Jan. 2.
“Household lending has reached its growth limit. We need foresight to separate the wheat from the chaff in corporate lending and investment.”
Ham characterized this shift as a crisis. “Past business results and massive scales do not guarantee tomorrow’s survival,” he said.
He called for innovation, saying, “We need to secure excellent asset management capabilities and to transform into an optimal specialized organization for promoting productive finance.”
Ham then talked about the Hana Financial Group’s non-banking division. “Despite a favorable market environment, including a booming stock market, the group’s non-banking divisions continue to be disappointing.”
Ham added, “We must enhance our execution capabilities so that ongoing initiatives such as strengthening core business competitiveness and expanding our retail presence can lead to faster results.”
Ham also mentioned the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) and shifting technological and financial paradigms such as stablecoins.
“The ripple effects of AI are profound and fundamental unlike previous industrial revolutions,” Ham said.
“We must proactively design and preemptively build a complete ecosystem encompassing the issuance, circulation, use, and reflux of coins.”
“There is a growing demand for finance to create a positive cash flow that directly contributes to the growth of the real economy and innovative industries, rather than focusing on performances achieved through safe asset management like real estate,” Ham said with respect to productive finance, a key financial topic of this year.
“Securing investment capabilities to identify promising investment opportunities is a key task that determines an organization’s survival,” he said.
Ham then selected financial consumer protection as a major task. “A financial consumer protection system must go beyond regulatory compliance and reinterpret all operations from a consumer protection perspective,” he continued.
“Income, asset, information, and digital divides are acting as barriers to financial accessibility, deepening distrust in finance. This cannot be resolved through simple and one-off social contribution activities.”
Ham defined the relocation of the group headquarters to Cheongna of Incheon in 2026 not as a simple relocation of office space, but the starting point of a major transformation that will revolutionize work methods and corporate cultures.
“We must create synergies through collaboration among affiliates and enhance digital accessibility and execution capabilities,” he said.
Forging Partnership with KSCA
Hana Financial Group announced on Dec. 26 that it has signed an agreement with the Korea Senior Citizens Association (KSCA) to address Korea’s aging society and support the financial well-being of senior citizens.
An official agreement signing ceremony was held at the KSCA’s Taepyeong Building in Seoul with the attendance of Hana Chairman Ham.
Through this agreement, Hana Financial Group expects to continue expanding its customized financial services for senior citizens by providing stable retirement asset management and financial convenience to the KSCA, which has been promoting various welfare programs to enhance senior citizens’ quality of life and promote their rights.
According to this agreement, Hana Financial Group and the Korea Senior Citizens Association plan to pursue joint projects in various areas including launching a partnership credit and debit card exclusively for KSCA members.
That will provide customized financial products linked to the public pension, expanding access to senior financial counseling and information and promoting financial collaboration to enhance the welfare of KSCA members.
In particular, Hana Financial Group will offer a discount of up to 15,000 won per month and 180,000 won per year for the use of a KSRCA membership-based Hana credit card.
For the use of a KSRCA membership-based Hana check card, the discount will be up to 5,000 won per month and 60,000 won per year.
_함영주 하나금융그룹 회장.png)
