Woori Financial Group Chair and CEO Yim Jong-yong said 2026 will mark a turning point as the group completes its transition into a full-fledged financial group, while deepening its artificial intelligence-driven transformation.
“The past three years were spent laying the foundation and putting sound systems in place,” Yim said in a New Year’s message. “This year will take us beyond what we have built so far, as we begin to shape new currents in finance and open the first chapter of our next leap.”
The year 2026 will be Woori’s first in more than a decade as a full financial conglomerate, making it a proving ground for groupwide synergy.
Yim outlined three priorities for the year: an expanded role in productive finance, AI-led transformation — or AX — across the group, and deeper synergy between banking and nonbanking units.
“Productive finance is an area where Woori, as a long-standing leader in corporate banking, can best excel,” he said. “We will support companies across all stages of growth through investment and lending, and move swiftly to make productive finance a core strength where we can take the lead.”
Yim also pledged to deepen the group’s AX push, which has already improved work processes and efficiency.
“This year, we must take execution a step further so employees can clearly feel the impact of AX in key areas,” he said, adding that the group will sharpen competitiveness in emerging technology-driven fields including stablecoins and security token offerings.
“All subsidiaries must not only strengthen their positions in core businesses but also deepen execution so that cooperation across units delivers tangible results,” he said, calling for new forms of synergy possible only under a comprehensive financial system that can provide more integrated and multi-dimensional financial solutions.
jwc@heraldcorp.com