Woori Bank opens Hungary office
이 글자크기로 변경됩니다.
(예시) 가장 빠른 뉴스가 있고 다양한 정보, 쌍방향 소통이 숨쉬는 다음뉴스를 만나보세요. 다음뉴스는 국내외 주요이슈와 실시간 속보, 문화생활 및 다양한 분야의 뉴스를 입체적으로 전달하고 있습니다.
South Korea’s Woori Bank opened its first representative office in Budapest, Hungary, after financial authorities there last week granted the license to operate, the firm said Tuesday.
Woori said it plans to finance both Korean businesses that have entered the market and Hungarian businesses through the new office. Hungary has grown as a key destination for Korean businesses seeking to launch electric vehicle battery plants or auto parts manufacturing factories in recent years.
Woori’s latest move marks the second establishment of a representative office in the central European nation by a Korean commercial lender. Shinhan Bank – the flagship bank under Korea’s No.1 banking group by total assets – opened its Budapest office in October.
Besides its recently established Budapest office, Woori Bank’s European network includes subsidiaries in Frankfurt, Germany and Moscow, Russia alongside offices in Katowice, Poland, London, England and Vladivostok, Russia.
“With our German subsidiary working as a European headquarters, we plan to build a network connecting the United Kingdom, Poland, Russia and Dubai,” a Woori Bank official said.
“The Budapest office’s key businesses will be financially supporting South Korean firms that have entered the market alongside investment banking deals and extending loans to Hungarian businesses,” the official added.
The state-run Industrial Bank of Korea is seeking to enter Hungary as well, with its CEO Yoon Jong-won having met its corporate clients and “inspecting sites,” in the central European nation during his European business trip in late November.
Woori Bank’s accumulated net profit in the January-September period jumped 71.4 percent on-year to 1.98 trillion won ($1.67 billion), ranking No.3 among Korean commercial lenders by size of net profit in the cited period.
By Jung Min-kyung(mkjung@heraldcorp.com)
Copyright © 코리아헤럴드. 무단전재 및 재배포 금지.