Kbank said on the 13th that cumulative net profit for the third quarter came to 103.4 billion won, down 15.5% from 122.4 billion won a year earlier. Kbank said it has "continued growth led by loans to corporations and, by posting cumulative net profit in the 100 billion-won range for two consecutive years, proved its revenue generation capability."
Third-quarter interest income rose 3.7% on-year to 111.5 billion won, while non-interest income surged 90.8% to 22.9 billion won. Investment revenue from products such as money market funds (MMFs) increased from a year earlier, and higher firm-banking fees from active virtual asset trading, along with expanded revenue from loan-comparison services and platform advertising, drove non-interest income growth.
However, with higher general and administrative expenses due to continued expansion of IT investment and increased marketing expense for top-line growth, standalone net profit for the third quarter fell 48.1% on-year to 19.2 billion won. As of the end of September, the number of customers was 14.97 million, up about 3 million from a year earlier, and in early October, the number topped 15 million.
Deposits stood at 30.4 trillion won and loans at 17.9 trillion won, up 38.5% and 10.3%, respectively, from a year earlier. Overall deposit growth was led by demand deposits. The parking account "Plus Box," offering up to 2.2% annual interest, saw balances rise by more than 5 trillion won from about 7 trillion won a year earlier to 12 trillion won. As a result, the share of demand deposits within personal deposits increased to 65.6%.
Loan balances continued to grow centered on loans to corporations under a policy of managing household loans. Kbank surpassed a cumulative 3 trillion won in loans supplied to sole proprietors in September, and the outstanding loan balance to corporations at the end of the third quarter was 1.93 trillion won, a surge of 84.1% from a year earlier. Half of this year's increase in loan balances came from loans to corporations.
In particular, the "Boss real estate secured loan" led growth in loans to corporations, with the balance increasing by 420 billion won from a year earlier. The total number of sole proprietor customers also topped 2 million, doubling in a year.
Despite asset growth, soundness improved as the share of safe assets increased and screening was tightened. The third-quarter delinquency rate fell for the third straight quarter to 0.56%, the lowest since the second quarter of 2022. The ratio of substandard or worse loans was 0.54%. The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) total capital ratio was 15.01%, above regulatory standards, and net interest margin (NIM) improved to 1.38% from the previous quarter. In the third quarter, Kbank's average share of outstanding loan balance to mid- to low-credit borrowers was 33.1%, and the share of new originations was 33.9%.
A Kbank official said, "Even in a challenging environment, we achieved meaningful results in top-line growth centered on loans to corporations, securing 15 million customers, and improving soundness," adding, "We will further accelerate growth through the practice of productive finance, digital asset innovation, and a transition to artificial intelligence (AI)."