The Industrial Bank of Korea led by CEO Cho Joon-hee has been pushing its globalization under a strategy designed to set up a global belt in Asia and then to expand its operations to six continents by setting up operation bases in those regions.

The IBK’ s major aim is to set up the bases in those key strategic regions in order to provide support to SMEs struggling to advance overseas by securing cooperative networks with local banks.

On Sept. 11, the bank said it had decided to diversify its routes to open up overseas financial markets to help SMEs set up presences in key foreign countries.

The critical part of the strategy involves IBK concluding MOUs with local banks in countries where SMEs have a hard time to enter due to tough regulations and other reasons and make financial support accessible for them locally.

For an initial step toward that direction, IBK will sign an MOU with the Bank of Australia in October as the land down under emerged as a promising corporate and individual financial market for Korean banks with many Korean firms doing business in that country in such areas as natural resources exploration including coal mining and iron ore mining and personnel loans for Korean students, immigrants, and business people.

The bank also has been taking steps to conclude MOUs with banks in South Africa, Turkey, Myanmar, and others, preceded by MOUs with BRI Bank in Indonesia, ENBD Bank in the United Arab Emirates, and Deutsche Bank, the largest bank in Germany and the second largest in the world in terms of assets with over 3,000 outlets in over 70 countries and with a history going back 142 years.

IBK also has been spurring its moves to set up a regional financial network in East Asia with China and Vietnam in the center of the financial link and India and Indonesia in the periphery, among emerging economies in Asia.

Indonesia is in the center of IBK’ s strategy as some 2,400 Korean firms run businesses in that country with some 800 new businesses launching their operations.

CEO Cho travelled to the southeast Asian country himself and signed MOUs with a number of local banks so that Korean firms doing business in that country can take out loans with the guarantees issued by IBK.

IBK will expand its operations in China to the western part and further inland of the country and in the southern part of Vietnam by setting up banking outlets in those regions.

Before this year is out, the bank plans to open a representative office in New Delhi, India, and later upgrade it to a branch. IBK currently operates 16 banking outlets overseas including nine financial outlets, a local subsidiary in China, five branches and two representative Offices.