[Edaily Reporter PARK JONG-HWA ] Kbank posted a net profit of 60 billion won in the first half of this year. The company attributes its first-half performance to the expansion of its customer base and growth in loans to sole proprietors.

Kbank announced on the 30th that it posted a net income of 60.1 billion won in the first half of this year. This figure represents a 29% decrease compared to the same period last year, reflecting a base effect from the first half of last year (84.2 billion won), which marked the bank’s best performance since its founding. Kbank’s revenue and operating profit for the first half of this year were 650.9 billion won and 59.3 billion won, respectively. Compared to the same period last year, these figures decreased by 3.8% and 30.5%, respectively.

As of the end of the second quarter, Kbank’s deposit balance stood at 26.6 trillion won, while its loan balance was 19.8 trillion won. In particular, loans to sole proprietors nearly doubled in just one year, rising from 1.6 trillion won to 3.3 trillion won, causing the total loan portfolio to grow by 13.8% year-over-year.

As a result, interest income, which stood at 211.6 billion won in the first half of last year, also rose by 20% to 253.0 billion won this year. During the same period, non-interest income fell by 68% from 73.3 billion won to 23.3 billion won, due to a decline in gains on bond sales.

In the first half of this year, Kbank’s customer base reached 16.45 million, an increase of 2.32 million compared to the same period last year. The customer penetration rate—the proportion of customers relative to the population by age group—stood at 32%, marking the first time it has reached the 30% range since the bank’s founding.

In the second half of the year, Kbank plans to focus on strengthening growth drivers such as loans to sole proprietors and businesses related to digital assets, including stablecoins. A Kbank official stated, “We have further strengthened our revenue base by expanding our customer base and achieving qualitative and quantitative growth in loans to sole proprietors,” adding, “Going forward, we will solidify the foundation for sustainable growth by expanding the sole proprietor market and securing a leading position in future financial sectors such as digital assets and stablecoins.”