[Real Estate Finance] '13th Month Salary' Year-End Tax Settlement... "More Convenient with Simple Authentication"

Fierce Competition in Bank Certificate Authentication

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Sun-mi] The year-end tax settlement season, when you can receive the "13th month salary," is approaching. The National Tax Service started the simplified year-end tax settlement service on Hometax from the 15th, allowing users to check various income and tax deduction proof documents. Starting this year, it has become more convenient as various certificates can also be used on Sontax (mobile Hometax).

According to the financial sector on the 19th, Sontax currently allows service use by logging in through the integrated login screen with a joint certificate (formerly public certificate), simple authentication (private certificate), or financial certificate. However, joint and financial certificates must be pre-registered on Hometax (PC or mobile) to be used. If you want to use Sontax with an unregistered certificate, you must use non-member login.

Simple authentication options have expanded as more providers such as telecom companies, big tech firms, and banks have joined. Especially this year, banks are adding more fun by holding various events for users to capture market share.

KB Mobile Certificate from Kookmin Bank, which can access Sontax, can be issued without visiting a branch for customers who are new to the bank, as long as they have a smart device in their name and an ID card. Users can easily log in with pattern, fingerprint, or Face ID and conduct financial transactions with a 6-digit simple password without OTP or security cards. Additionally, KB Mobile Certificate can be used not only for over 52 public services such as ‘Government24’ and ‘Chungyak Home’ but also within KB Financial Group’s affiliates’ non-face-to-face channels. Notably, logging into the KB Securities M-Able application with the KB Mobile Certificate allows all transactions, including stock trading and banking, without additional authentication.

Kookmin Bank is also running an event until the 18th of next month, offering 1 million, 100,000, 10,000, and 1,000 Pointrees by lottery to customers who log in to Hometax or Sontax with the KB Mobile Certificate, and coffee coupons to the first 10,000 customers.

Shinhan Bank has also applied the Shinhan Certificate to the National Tax Service’s year-end tax settlement simplified service and public institution services such as Government24. It can be issued easily in 10 seconds via the Shinhan app SOL and has a validity period of three years, allowing convenient use with biometric authentication and PIN input without annual renewal hassle. The bank is holding the ‘Catch the Lucky Tiger’ event until the 24th of next month, offering prizes such as LG StanbyMe, iPhone 13 Pro, Galaxy Z Flip3, and Galaxy Z Fold3 by lottery to customers using the Shinhan Certificate for the National Tax Service’s year-end tax settlement simplified service.

Naver also applied the Naver Certificate for the first time this year in the year-end tax settlement simplified service. After identity verification with the Naver Certificate, users can apply for data provision consent and check simplified data. Naver held an event until the 14th for users who issued the Naver Certificate for the first time and until the 3rd of next month during the year-end tax settlement period for users who logged in to Hometax with the Naver Certificate, offering Pay Points ranging from 100 won to 1 million won. Collaborating with businesses in finance, public institutions, education, and telecommunications, Naver is expanding its partnership network and has established an authentication ecosystem at Chungyak Home, Korea Industrial Human Resources Corporation, Yonsei University, KT, and unmanned convenience store Emart24.

Additionally, Kakao, the three telecom operators’ PASS, Samsung Pass, and NHN Payco also provide certificate services for year-end tax settlement.

Intensifying Certificate Competition

In the financial sector, following KB Kookmin and Shinhan Bank, other commercial banks such as Hana, Woori, and NH Nonghyup are actively entering the certificate business, and competition to secure certificate users is expected to intensify further.

Hana Bank was selected as an electronic signature certification business operator under the Electronic Signature Act by the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Korea Internet & Security Agency at the end of last year and is promoting the expansion of certification services. It is currently preparing to provide simple authentication for public institutions such as Government24 and the National Tax Service, as well as integrated authentication services for MyData. Woori Bank and Nonghyup Bank have formed internal teams to work on building their own certificates, with expectations that their own certificates could be launched as early as the first half of this year.

The heated competition in bank certificates is influenced by the collapse of the monopoly of the public certificate, the full opening of the private certificate market, and the full implementation of API-based financial personal credit information management (MyData service) from this month, which has increased the demand for fast and convenient integrated authentication. MyData is a service that collects scattered personal credit information in one place, analyzes financial status and consumption habits, recommends financial products, and helps with asset and credit management. Thirty-three providers from banks, securities, cards, and fintech industries offer the service, and customers must have a certificate to use it.

A commercial bank official said, "Banks are competing to expand the use of certificates for various tasks requiring certificates through continuous partnerships with various MyData providers."

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