Savings banks' profits jump up 15 pct in 2019

SEOUL, March 23 (Yonhap) -- Savings banks in South Korea enjoyed hefty profits last year due to a sharp rise in their interest income, data showed Monday.

The combined net profit of 79 savings banks came to 1.27 trillion won (US$995 million) in 2019, up 14.8 percent from 2018, according to the data from the Financial Supervisory Service.

The banks' combined operating profit also jumped 16.7 percent on-year to 1.54 trillion won, with their combined interest earnings gaining 6.6 percent to 4.45 trillion won.

Meanwhile, their loan-loss provisions fell 5.9 percent on-year to 1.17 trillion won.

Their total assets came to 77.1 trillion won at the end of 2019, up 7.6 trillion won, or 11 percent, from 69.5 trillion won at end-2018, according to the data.

Their loan delinquency ratio stood at 3.7 percent at the end of 2019, down 0.6 percentage point from the same period of 2018.

The banks' average capital adequacy ratio came to 14.89 percent at the end of 2019, up 0.57 percentage point from the end of 2018 and far above the 8 percent recommended by the Bank for International Settlements.

entropy@yna.co.kr
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