The Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) opened a representative office in the Wroclaw area in Poland on May 16, the bank said.
IBK’s opening of an office came two months after the bank obtained the go-ahead from Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF) on March 15.
IBK has been pushing ahead with a plan to establish a new business strategy center in Europe.
The bank’s new office is designed to lay a foothold to enter the EU market. Wroclaw is Poland’s biggest industrial city. Korean companies, such as LG Energy Solution and POSCO, and their cooperative SMEs, have already entered the region.
Among those on hand at the ceremony to open the office were IBK President Kim Sung-tae, Korean Ambassador to Poland Lim Hoon-min, Polish government officials and heads of Korean operations in Poland.
In his speech at the event, IBK President Kim said, “I’m pleased to open a representative office in a production center and a heart of Europe, and IBK will redouble efforts to forge reciprocal and collaborative relations by fulfilling its roles as a differentiated, SME financial institution, such as pursuing stable growth of future entrance companies and nurturing Poland’s local SME ecosystem.”
IBK’s establishing the office in Poland brings the number of such offices to 60 in 13 countries. IBK’s entering Poland is the first project IBK President Kim implemented since he took office.
IBK Sees Outstanding Loans Stand at 226.5 Trillion Won and Market Share Reach at 23.3%
Thanks to its full support to SMEs and small business owners, who have been grappling with difficulties, the Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) saw outstanding loans to SMEs stand at 226.5 trillion won in the first quarter of 2023, an increase of 5.8 trillion won or 2.6 percent rise compared to the end of 2022, and its market share reach 23.3 percent, the largest-ever.
IBK’s efforts led to the “virtuous cycle” growth. The bank logged 723.3 billion won in Q1 net profit on a consolidated basis, a 12.8 percent jump year-on-year over the same period of the previous year.
IBK chalked up 614.7 billion won in Q1 net profit in a separate financial statement.
IBK saw the non-performing loan rate, credit cost rate and delinquency rate stand at 0.91 percent, 0.81 percent and 0.45 percent, respectively.
Additional reserves, designed to siphon off losses of future dangers, have been secured to lay a foundation for stable future growth.
An IBK official said, “IBK does its best to harmonize a balance between marketability and public interests by supplying money to SMEs without interruptions as planned this year, based on stable profitability, and the bank will continue a virtuous cycle structure in which customers and the bank raise values together to achieve a vision of a global super top-tier financial group offering best and innovative services.”
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