Korea’s Hana Bank plans to open in SL

Shirajiv SIRIMANE

Hana Bank’s headquarters in central Seoul

One of the largest banks in South Korea, Hana Bank will open one of their branches in Sri Lanka this year. According to a coordinator of this project, a business delegation from Korea is expected next week in Sri Lanka. A financial source said the Koran bank would also be included in this team.

She said that increasing trading between the two countries and the rapid development taking place in Sri Lanka were the main reasons for Hana to enter Sri Lanka.

In addition the increased number of Sri Lanka expatriate presence in Korea and the higher number of students going for education too were other reasons for this bank to stamp its presence in Sri Lanka.

In addition several leading Korean companies and enterprises have expressed their keeness to invest in Sri Lanka in several areas including motor industry, power generation and infrastructure development.

“We need a Korean bank to facilitate these investments as well,” she added.

Hana Bank is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hana Financial Group Inc., the fourth largest commercial banking group in South Korea.

Hana Bank is the third largest bank by asset value in South Korea.

The bank has a full line of personal banking products and services from checking and savings to loans and online banking.

As on March 31, 2011, Hana Bank had a network of 663 branches and about 3,150 ATMs.

The healthy leaning and borrowing rates in the local banking sector which are more attractive than in Korea too was another reason for Hana Bank to eye Sri Lanka.

Meanwhile Hana Bank has also singed a MoU with National Savings Bank to facilitate Sri Lankans working in Korea to remit their earnings to Sri Lanka.

The triple A rating that was maintained by the NSB for over a decade was the main reason for Hana Bank to single out the NBS. Hana Bank through the Korean Post too has presence all over Korea and this move helps Sri Lanka expat workers in money remittance activities in a big way.

Hana Financial Group also completed its 4.4 trillion won ($3.9 billion) purchase of Korea Exchange Bank from Lone Star Funds and Export Import Bank of Korea recently.