[Weekly Savings Banks] Record High Performance and Social Contribution Activities from the Beginning of the Year

Jae-sik Park, President of the Korea Federation of Savings Banks

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Min-young] The savings bank industry recorded its highest-ever performance last year.

◆ Industry Achieves Record-Breaking Performance

Park Jae-sik, Chairman of the Korea Federation of Savings Banks, recently stated in his New Year's address, "The savings bank industry achieved a record high performance last year, realizing a profit of 1.26 trillion won." This marks the third consecutive year that the industry’s total net profit has exceeded 1 trillion won.

Chairman Park evaluated, "Over the past year, we successfully launched digital banking services available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, established mid- to long-term development plans for savings banks through research projects, and held policy symposiums to ensure these were reflected in government policies."

Additionally, Chairman Park said, "We improved regulations to revitalize business operations, such as easing the Debt Service Ratio (DSR) management standards and allowing overseas remittance services, and enhanced the utilization of customers’ savings bank accounts through partnerships with simple remittance and payment service providers, achieving significant results."

He emphasized the need for further deregulation for the continuous development of the industry. Chairman Park stressed, "We must comprehensively review regulations on savings banks, propose to financial authorities the elimination of unfair or unreasonable regulations, and establish an institutional foundation for sustainable growth."

◆ Middle and High School Students, College Students: Apply for the Bang Jeong-hwan Scholarship

Welcome Financial Group, which includes Welcome Savings Bank as an affiliate, announced the recruitment of the 19th Bang Jeong-hwan Scholarship recipients.

Since 2011, under the philosophy of nurturing future talents, the Bang Jeong-hwan Scholarship provided by Welcome Financial Group has been supporting students who continue their studies without losing their dreams despite difficult circumstances.

This scholarship is divided into welfare scholarships and academic excellence scholarships.

The welfare scholarship targets middle school, high school, and college students facing economic difficulties, while the academic excellence scholarship is awarded to high school and college students based on their academic performance in the previous semester.

Applications must be submitted by 6 p.m. on the 13th via mail (postmarked by the Korea Post) or email. Related documents and guidelines can be found on the Welcome Savings Bank website.

◆ J Trust Group Donates to Companion Dog Organization

J Trust Group, which includes JT Capital, JT Chin-Ae Savings Bank, and JT Savings Bank as affiliates, donated funds to the companion dog-mediated therapy team under the Korea Kennel Association to support animal-assisted therapy volunteer activities.

The Korea Kennel Association plans to use the donation to support animal-assisted therapy volunteer activities for dementia patients and individuals with developmental disabilities. The Korea Kennel Association is a dog organization authorized by the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, conducting psychological therapy based on experiential activities that allow interaction with companion animals, helping participants improve and recover cognitive, emotional, and physical functions.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.