Global Economic Times

South Korean Financial Groups Surpass ₩4,000 Trillion in Total Assets; Net Profit Hits ₩26.7 Trillion Amid Stock Market Rally: Hwang Sujin Reporter / Updated : 2026-04-09 12:26:57

The combined total assets of South Korea’s major financial holding companies have officially crossed the ₩4,000 trillion milestone. Driven by a robust performance in the financial investment sector following a bullish stock market, the industry’s total net profit also saw a significant year-on-year increase of 12.4%.

According to the "2025 Financial Holding Company Performance (Provisional)" report released by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) on April 9, the total consolidated assets of the country’s 10 major financial groups reached ₩4,067.4 trillion at the end of last year. This represents an 8.3% (₩312.7 trillion) jump from the previous year’s ₩3,754.7 trillion.

Sector-by-Sector Growth and Composition
Banking continues to dominate the portfolio, though non-banking sectors showed explosive growth. The breakdown of asset weight by sector is as follows:

Banking: 72.6%
Financial Investment: 12.3%
Insurance: 7.7%
Credit Finance (Cards/Capital): 6.0%
While all sectors saw asset growth, the Insurance (24.0%) and Financial Investment (23.3%) divisions stood out with the most aggressive expansion.

Profitability: The Stock Market Tailwind
The total net profit for the financial groups reached ₩26.7 trillion, up ₩3 trillion from the previous year.

Banks reported ₩17.9 trillion (a 10.1% increase).
Financial Investment firms saw a massive 62.3% surge, reaching ₩5.3 trillion, fueled by increased brokerage commissions and trading fees during the market rally.
Conversely, the Insurance and Credit Finance sectors saw slight declines of 6.1% and 0.7%, respectively, indicating a temporary cooling in their profitability.
Stability vs. Emerging Risks
Capital adequacy remains healthy, with the BIS capital ratio rising by 0.09 percentage points to 15.75%, well above regulatory requirements. However, asset quality indicators are flashing yellow:

Non-Performing Loan (NPL) Ratio: Rose to 0.95% (+0.05%p).
Loan-Loss Provision Coverage Ratio: Dropped to 106.8% (a sharp decrease of 15.6%p), suggesting a reduced cushion against potential bad debts.
Furthermore, the debt-to-equity ratio of holding companies (separate basis) rose to 32.2%, and the double leverage ratio increased to 114.7%.