Sleeping with the Enemy? Banks, Big Tech, and Fintech Join Hands in Digital Finance

[Asia Economy Reporter Kangwook Cho] Collaboration between the financial sector and information and communication technology (ICT) companies is expanding across the board. Recently, even competing banks, big tech, and fintech companies appear to be joining hands to revitalize digital finance.

According to the financial sector on the 26th, IBK Industrial Bank signed a 'Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for Digital Financial Innovation' with Naver Cloud on the 23rd.

Through this agreement, the two companies will actively cooperate in the introduction and utilization of digital innovation technologies such as cloud and artificial intelligence (AI).

Specifically, they plan to establish a continuous communication channel to review whether there are digital technologies owned by Naver and its affiliates that can be integrated with the bank, and if necessary, the two companies will directly promote technological collaboration.

They also agreed to discover and recommend promising startups possessing innovative financial technologies and ideas to each other. They will share a startup pool and consider these startups as collaborative companies for IBK 1st Lab, an innovation testbed operated by Industrial Bank for developing innovative financial products and services.

Lee Dong-geol, Chairman of the Korea Development Bank (left), and Lee Seung-geon, CEO of Viva Republica, posing for a commemorative photo after signing a business agreement on the 23rd.

On the same day, the Korea Development Bank signed a business agreement with Viva Republica, the fintech platform operator of Toss, for 'fintech technology cooperation and joint development and sales of financial/non-financial products and services.'

Through this agreement, the two parties plan to expand non-face-to-face transactions based on fintech technology, cooperate in sales of deposit products and joint development and marketing of new affiliated products, and collaborate on new data-driven businesses such as MyData. They agreed to jointly develop new and innovative products and services.

It is expected that new financial products and services will emerge by combining the Korea Development Bank’s high stability and customer trust as a policy bank with the innovative financial services of a leading domestic fintech company.

The image shows Shinhan Bank CEO Jin Ok-dong (left) and Nexon CEO Lee Jung-heon attending the non-face-to-face business agreement ceremony held on the 18th.

Shinhan Bank signed a business agreement with Nexon on the 18th to jointly promote innovative projects through the convergence of 'finance and gaming.'

Notably, Shinhan Bank CEO Jin Ok-dong personally visited Nexon's headquarters located in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province, showing great commitment to this agreement. Nexon is a game company whose main customers are the 2030 MZ (Millennial + Generation Z) generation. They judged Nexon to be an ideal future business partner targeting younger generations.

The main contents of the agreement between the two companies include △ discovering new business models based on AI (artificial intelligence) and data △ promoting payment business based on financial infrastructure △ developing content linked to finance and gaming and joint marketing △ jointly pursuing future businesses.

Shinhan Bank CEO Jin Ok-dong said, "Through a strategic partnership with Nexon, we will provide completely different and innovative financial services," adding, "We will offer a new customer experience combining finance and gaming targeting the MZ generation."

Last month, Shinhan Bank also signed a strategic business agreement with Microsoft Korea (Korea MS) for digital future finance research and service innovation.

Through this agreement, Shinhan Bank and Microsoft Korea will combine Microsoft’s rich global experience and digital technology with Shinhan Bank’s financial innovation research and development (R&D) space called ‘Expace.’

Expace is a space where Shinhan Bank’s digital department, fintech, startups, and innovative large companies collaborate both online and offline to develop and verify financial services.

Earlier, KB Financial Group officially launched a joint venture for AI-based simple investment securities brokerage by partnering with its affiliate KB Securities and game company NCSoft.

Woori Financial Group plans to establish a MyData joint venture with telecommunications company KT. Both are major shareholders of K Bank, Korea’s first internet-only bank. They will prepare a joint AI personnel training program to master financial industry know-how and AI technology together and foster AI talent specialized in the financial sector.

Hana Financial Group partnered with SK Telecom to establish the fintech company ‘Fink’ in 2016, providing mobile-based lifestyle financial platform services.

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