KT Becomes Second Largest Shareholder of Shinhan EZ Insurance... Partnership for Insurance DX

(From left) Jiyonggu, Vice President of Duzon Bizon; Kim Chaehee, Executive Director of KT Strategic Planning Office; Kang Byungkwan, CEO of Shinhan EZ Insurance; and Go Seokheon, Senior Managing Director and CSSO of Shinhan Financial Group, are taking a commemorative photo after signing the agreement. Photo by KT

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Soo-yeon] On the 6th, KT announced that it has acquired 9.9% of the shares of Shinhan EZ (Easy) Non-Life Insurance, marking the beginning of a full-scale digital transformation in insurance based on digital platform technology.

With this investment, KT became the second largest shareholder of Shinhan EZ Non-Life Insurance, following Shinhan Financial Group.

Shinhan EZ Non-Life Insurance is a non-life insurance company launched in July as a subsidiary of Shinhan Financial Group. It is promoting a business model transformation based on digital technology and has been maintaining close consultations, including signing a digital insurance business agreement with KT in August for a large-scale innovation effort.

KT will jointly promote the digital transformation of the entire insurance process with Shinhan EZ Non-Life Insurance, discover insurtech solutions, and plan data-based businesses and telecommunications-finance convergence services. In particular, innovative technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), big data, and cloud will be applied to core insurance tasks including product development, marketing, risk management, claims payment, and customer complaint handling. This will provide customers with fast and convenient subscription and claims services, while enabling companies to pursue efficient cost management through big data-based risk management and marketing. It is expected that this will establish a virtuous cycle structure leading to customer benefits such as reasonable premium pricing.

KT is also focusing on the digital transformation (DX) of the entire financial business. With this share acquisition, it is expected to secure a favorable position in the market by showcasing various convergence models in the insurance DX field and acquiring related references.

On October 31, key stakeholders including Kim Chae-hee, Head of KT’s Strategic Planning Office (Executive Vice President), Ko Seok-heon, CSSO of Shinhan Financial Group (Group Strategy and Sustainability Management Division Head), Kang Byung-kwan, CEO of Shinhan EZ Non-Life Insurance, and Ji Yong-gu, Vice President of Douzone Bizon, signed a new share subscription agreement and shareholder agreement at the law firm Bae, Kim & Lee in Jongno-gu, Seoul, agreeing to actively cooperate to strengthen mutual synergy.

Kim Chae-hee, Head of KT’s Strategic Planning Office, said, “KT will strengthen cooperation with Shinhan EZ Non-Life Insurance and Shinhan Financial Group to lead the digital transformation of the insurance and financial industries,” adding, “We will develop various ICT-finance convergence services that enhance customer convenience.”

In January, KT and Shinhan Financial Group signed a strategic partnership for future growth DX business cooperation and mutually acquired shares worth about 400 billion KRW to ensure active execution and business continuity. To date, they have been conducting more than 30 joint projects focused on three pillars: discovering new future growth engines, creating synergy in existing businesses of both companies, and strengthening DX capabilities.

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