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Woori to invest $57B over 5 years in advanced industries, underserved community support

Published: 29 Sep. 2025, 19:09

Woori Financial Group CEO and Chairman Yim Jong-yong speaks during a press conference held at Woori Bank's headquarters in Jung District, central Seoul, on Sept. 29. [YONHAP]

Woori Financial Group will invest 80 trillion won ($57 billion) over the next five years to support inclusive and productive finance, shifting away from a business model centered on household lending such as mortgage loans. The group plans to focus investments on advanced industries like AI and biotech, as well as on underserved communities.

Woori Financial Group CEO and Chairman Yim Jong-yong unveiled the “Woori Financial Group: Future Co-growth Initiative” at a press conference held at the group’s headquarters in Jung District, central Seoul, on Monday.

“We humbly accept criticism that we’ve relied too heavily on interest income,” Yim said. “As we face a period of low growth, we will launch a group-wide initiative to support industrial and corporate development.”

Woori Financial Group said it would allocate 73 trillion won to productive finance and 7 trillion won to inclusive finance by 2030.

The group will invest 10 trillion won into the proposed National Growth Fund, becoming the first private financial institution to do so. The fund was introduced last month by President Lee Jae Myung, who proposed a total of 150 trillion won in capital — with 75 trillion won expected to come from the private sector.

Woori Financial Group will also allocate 7 trillion won in direct group investments and provide 56 trillion won in loans and financial products tailored to small businesses and vulnerable groups. An additional 1 trillion won will be used for a group-level co-investment fund focused on 10 strategic industries, including AI, biotech and defense.

Under the inclusive finance plan, new clients with credit scores below level seven will be eligible for a 0.3 percentage point interest rate reduction. Existing customers with strong repayment records and scores below level 8 may receive a discount of up to 1.5 percentage points.

Lim said the initiative is expected to benefit some 550,000 individuals over a five-year period.

“Our common equity capital ratio continues to improve, and we’ve secured enough internal capital to fund new investments through portfolio restructuring,” Yim added.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY KIM SEON-MI [[email protected]]