Financial

Feb. 1 (Asia Today) — Hana Financial Group said Sunday it will accelerate efforts to boost performance at its non-bank affiliates this year, marking a pivotal shift toward more balanced growth as its banking unit continues to dominate earnings.

Last year the group posted a record net profit of 4 trillion won (about $2.9 billion), up 7.1% from a year earlier, driven primarily by strong results at Hana Bank. But performance at securities, insurance and card units lagged, dragging the non-bank contribution to overall profit down to about 12% from nearly 16% the previous year.

“We expect the normalization of performance for the group’s non-bank subsidiaries to begin in earnest starting this year,” the group said, calling 2026 the first year of “non-bank normalization.”

Under Chairman Ham Young-joo, Hana has set a target of raising non-bank profit share to 30% by 2027. But with the sector’s recent weak showing, he has emphasized to employees that “the non-banking sector cannot continue as it is.”

Hana Securities saw net profit fall nearly 6% last year to 212 billion won (about $147 million), while Hana Card’s profit slipped about 2% to 217.7 billion won (about $151 million). Hana Insurance’s deficit widened to 47 billion won. Hana Life Insurance did return to profit, posting 15.2 billion won (about $32.5 million) after a 7 billion won loss (about $4.8 million) the prior year, but its contribution remains limited.

To strengthen non-bank performance this year, the group said it is laying groundwork to secure profitability-focused growth engines and improve asset quality. Chairman Ham said non-bank results will be “key to improving the group’s return on equity,” projecting an 11-12% ROE if sufficient returns can be generated relative to capital.

Moves already under way include a newly launched commercial paper issue by Hana Securities, laying the foundation for broader venture capital supply, and plans to contribute about 18 trillion won (about $12.44 billion) this year to productive finance, including direct corporate investments.

Hana Card is also poised to play a role in a planned stablecoin consortium, with its distribution and payment functions seen as essential to linking stablecoins with the real economy. Last year, the card unit signed agreements with partners including EQBR and TravelWallet to explore stablecoin-based payment and settlement services.

In the insurance sector, the group is exploring acquisitions to build scale. It participated in due diligence for Lotte Insurance and recently submitted a letter of intent to acquire Yebyeol Insurance, potentially expanding its insurance portfolio.

A financial industry insider said Hana’s push to create synergies across its wealth management and capital markets divisions could help its non-bank units evolve into top-tier players – a shift that could help lift group net profit beyond the 5 trillion won (about $3.46 billion) mark over time.

— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI

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Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260202010000254