One year on, K-Bank eyes industry leader with new services

SEOUL, April 3 (Yonhap) -- K-Bank, South Korea's first Internet-only bank, said Tuesday it will launch a variety of new services such as overseas remittance in a bid to boost customer convenience and diversify its portfolio. A set of new plans were announced to mark the first anniversary of the lender's establishment. In April 2017, the Internet-only bank led by mobile services operator KT Corp. was launched with much fanfare, as part of the government's efforts to bring competition and deregulation to the financial sector. "We will very much simplify the overseas remittance procedures provided by traditional banks, as customers don't have to write down all the details of recipients' banking information, and they can check how things are going via our mobile app or online," Shim Seong-hoon, the head of K-Bank, said. Mortgage loan products will also be launched, with all the loan-taking process done without customers' physically visiting bank branches, while providing counseling services by experts to meet customers' needs. One year on, K-Bank has secured around 710,000 customers, and it has received 1.29 trillion won (US$ 1.22 billion) and extended 1.03 trillion won in credit, respectively. Among the new services by the Internet banks so far are new credit assessments based on big data, wealth management by artificial intelligence systems and voice recognition banking services. "Over the past year, I believe the Internet bank brought many changes and innovation in the traditional picture of financial transactions," Shim said. "We will continue to come up with diverse programs to better benefit customers and to secure our growth engine." graceoh@yna.co.kr (END)