"Metaverse Hangang Branch"... The 'Metaverse' Trend Sweeping the Financial Sector

Financial Companies Holding Meetings and Signing Project Agreements in the Metaverse
Effective Promotion to the Predominantly MZ Generation
Potential for Metaverse Financial Branches with Future Technological Advances

On the 21st, Chairman Kim Tae-o and representatives of DGB Financial Group affiliates took a commemorative photo before the group management meeting on 'Zepeto,' a metaverse platform created by Naver Z.

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-seop] The financial sector has begun accelerating preparations to enter the metaverse. They are holding executive meetings in the metaverse or conducting related research to find ways to utilize it. This is interpreted as a strategy to capture the ‘MZ (Millennial + Generation Z)’ generation, the mainstream of the metaverse world and a major customer base for the financial sector, and use it as a future growth engine.

According to the financial sector on the 28th, recently Kim Tae-oh, Chairman of DGB Financial Group, held a management issue meeting with CEOs of affiliated companies in ‘Zepeto,’ a virtual world created by Naver Z. Chairman Kim and each CEO created their own avatars and accessed a virtual conference room set up on a map exclusive to the financial holding company. This meeting was the second time following last month’s management meeting held by DGB Financial Holding executives in Zepeto.

The metaverse is a compound word of ‘meta,’ meaning virtual or transcendence, and ‘universe,’ meaning world or cosmos. It refers to a kind of three-dimensional virtual world and was first introduced by Neal Stephenson in his 1992 novel ‘Snow Crash.’ It is characterized as a space where people can live similarly to reality across politics, economy, society, and culture.

Last month, Kwon Joon-hak, President of NongHyup Bank, listened to a presentation on the metaverse with employees of the Digital Research & Development (R&D) Center and directly ordered the utilization of digital technology. The presentation covered the forms and implementation technologies of the metaverse, major cases, application fields, and expected effects. President Kwon emphasized, "Digital innovation is a survival task on which the future of the bank depends," and urged, "Please focus all efforts on securing customer-centered platform competitiveness."

In the case of Shinhan Card, on the 15th, President Lim Young-jin personally met Professor Kim Sang-gyun of Kangwon National University to sign a project agreement to explore metaverse utilization methods. Professor Kim is the author of the books ‘Metaverse’ and ‘Metaverse: New Opportunities.’ A Shinhan Card official explained, "Shinhan Card in the metaverse will be an opportunity to provide new value and experiences to Generation Z and customers, breaking away from the traditional rigid image of the financial sector."

Financial Sector Metaverse Craze... Will It Go Beyond Simple Promotion to Opening ‘Virtual Branches’?

The financial sector’s metaverse strategy is analyzed as part of a promotional strategy targeting the MZ generation rather than an immediate profit-making tool. Zepeto has 200 million users (as of last February), with 80% under the age of 18, showing that the MZ generation constitutes the overwhelming majority. The U.S. metaverse platform Roblox has 50% of users under 16 years old, with an average daily user count of 40 million. Hana Financial Research Institute also released a study stating, "Pilot-level metaverse technology adoption and development of metaverse financial content for the MZ generation are necessary."

As technology advances and user inflow continues, it may be possible to install virtual branches in the metaverse or conduct product introductions and promotions for customers, replacing on-site operations. Global financial companies are introducing metaverse technology into on-site operations at a basic level. Toronto-Dominion Bank in Canada shows investment portfolios through augmented reality (AR) devices when VIP customers request investment consultations. Commonwealth Bank of Australia replaced offline real estate services with AR devices that scan surrounding real estate. KB Financial Group Management Research Institute also proposed opening digital branches and operating digital training centers within Zepeto.

There is also potential to penetrate the asset management market. Roblox already allows virtual currency (Robux) earned in the metaverse to be used as cash. Using mobile financial services like PayPal, 100,000 Robux can be exchanged for about 350 dollars. Although domestic law currently prohibits cashing out game assets, if officially recognized in the future, it would open another financial market in the virtual world.

Meanwhile, fueled by the growth of the metaverse, products investing in related devices or companies have also begun to appear. KB Asset Management has launched a fund investing in representative metaverse stocks listed on the global stock market.

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