SC Jeil Bank, 1Q Net Profit 155.1 Billion KRW... 51% Increase YoY

Impact of Improving Dual Employment and Reducing Labor Costs

[Asia Economy Reporter Minwoo Lee] SC First Bank posted a strong performance in the first quarter of this year, with net profit increasing by more than 50 billion KRW compared to the same period last year. This is attributed to growth in interest income driven by expanded loan assets and cost savings from large-scale special retirements.

SC First Bank announced on the 16th that its consolidated net profit for the first quarter of this year reached 155.1 billion KRW, a 50.7% increase from 102.9 billion KRW in the first quarter of last year. Operating profit rose 44.6% over the same period to 193.5 billion KRW. The increase in interest income was due to improved net interest margin (NIM), along with cost reductions from large-scale special retirements in the fourth quarter of last year.

Interest income grew 16.8% year-on-year, supported by steady strengthening of the business base, expansion of loan assets, and improvement in net interest margin (NIM). Non-interest income decreased by 21.4% compared to the same period last year, as asset management (WM) and financial market businesses slowed due to external market conditions.

Expenses during the same period decreased by 17.1%. The cost savings effect from the special retirement program conducted in October last year became more concrete starting this year. The provision for loan losses decreased by 5.3 billion KRW compared to the same period last year, influenced by improvements in corporate credit ratings.

The return on assets (ROA) rose by 0.21 percentage points to 0.70% compared to the same period last year. Return on equity (ROE) also increased by 3.69 percentage points to 12.54%. The ratio of non-performing loans and delinquency rate fell by 0.06 percentage points and 0.01 percentage points, respectively, to 0.18% and 0.11% compared to the same period last year.

Meanwhile, the asset size at the end of the first quarter this year was 93.6762 trillion KRW, up 8.0% (6.9619 trillion KRW) from the end of last year. The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) capital adequacy ratio and Tier 1 capital ratio stood at 16.01% and 14.23%, respectively, continuously exceeding regulatory requirements and maintaining sound capital soundness.

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