Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo of KB Financial Group. (Photos: KB Financial Group)

KB Financial Group achieved a 1 trillion won milestone in quarterly net profit despite the COVID-19 pandemic. In an electronic filing on Oc. 22, the financial group said it posted 1.166.6 trillion won in net profit in 2020 Q3.

The figure represents an 18.8 percent surge or an improvement of 184.8 billion won over the previous quarter.

A rise in Q3 net profit was owed to the base effect of front-loading about 149 billion won in allowance for bad debts in Q2 and counting 145 billion won in a gain in bargain purchase of Prudential Life Insure on top of an increase in net interest income and net commission and fee income.

A KB Financial Group official said as operating profit, except major transient factors, stood at the upper 900 billion won, the financial group maintained a stable business performance on the back of a rise in key income.

The category included interest income and commission and fee income, as well as conservative soundness management despite fears of an economic recession.

KB Financial Group earned 2.460.2 trillion won in Q3 net interest income, a 6.1 percent rise over the same period of the previous year.

The financial group saw net income margin decline in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and a drop in benchmark interest rate, caused by a protracted low interest trend, but KB Financial Group achieved a stable business performance on the back of a rise in net interest income following diversifying of portfolios and rising loan volumes, the financial group said.

KB Securities’ business performance was outstanding. The securities company chalked up 209.7 billion won in 2020 Q3 net income, an improvement of 55.8 billion won over 2019 Q3.

The good business performance was attributed to a rise in brokerage fee income and improving business performance on the part of the investment banking business.

A KB Securities official said the securities company saw accumulating operating profit, excluding transient factors like 30.5 billion won in revenues arising from disposing real estate assets, jump 61 percent over a year earlier to about 361 billion won.

KB Securities achieved a solid business performance amid the stark situation surrounding equity fund scandals, the official added.

KB Kookmin Bank posted 635.6 billion won in Q3 net profit, a 3.8 percent decline or a drop of 24.9 billion over the previous quarter.

A KB Kookmin Bank official said the bank saw revenues related to securities and derivative products surge, influenced by the stabilization of the financial market in the second quarter, but the bank saw Q3 net profit decline.

But the bank maintained a stable operating profit on the back of a solid rise in interest income and a decline in allowance for bad credit debts, the official added.

KB Kookmin Bank logged 1.49 percent in net income margin and 292.1 trillion won in won-nominated loads as of the end of September, an 8.6 percent increase over the end of the previous year.

The bank posted 0.20 percent in delinquency rate and 0.32 percent in non-performing loan rate as of the end of September.

A view of the building in Yeouido, Seoul, where KB Financial Group has its head office.