Financial holding companies in South Korea logged an almost 11 percent rise in their earnings last year thanks to robust performances of banks and insurers, data showed Wednesday. The combined net profit of 10 financial holding firms here came to 23.85 trillion won ($16.79 billion) in 2024, up 2.32 trillion won, or 10.8 percent, from a year earlier, according to the preliminary data from the Financial Supervisory Service. Net income from their banks accounted for 59.8 percent of the total, while earnings from their insurance firms accounted for 14.3 percent of their combined net profit, with returns on their financial investments accounting for 11.7 percent of the total. As of end-December, the combined total assets of the financial holding firms stood at 3,754.8 trillion won, up 224 trillion won, or 6.3 percent, from a year earlier. Their nonperforming loan (NPL) ratio came to 0.9 percent at end-December, up 0.18 percentage point from 0.72 percent a year ago. Amid a rise in the NPL ratio, the firms' loan loss reserve ratio dropped to 122.7 percent from 150.6 percent over the cited period. The 10 financial holding firms are KB Financial Group, Shinhan Financial Group, Nonghyup Financial Group, Hana Financial Group, Woori Financial Group, BNK Financial Group, DGB Financial Group, JB Financial Group, Korea Investment Holdings Co. and Meritz Financial Group. The companies had a total of 335 financial affiliates as of end-December, up from 329 tallied six months earlier. (ICE SEOUL)

Fonte notizia: The Korea Times