Company: SHG
Filing Date: 2025-04-23
Form Type: 20-F
Source: 0001193125-25-089950
Chunk: 17

Company: SHINHAN FINANCIAL GROUP CO LTD
Filing Date: 2025-04-23
Form: 20-F
Chunk 17
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-scale user networks, such as Kakao Corp., NAVER and Samsung Electronics, recently make significant inroads in providing virtual payment services through a system based on a growing convergence of financial services and technology commonly referred to as “fintech,” competition for online customers is growing not just among commercial banks, but also from online and mobile payment service providers. KT consortium’s K-Bank, Kakao consortium’s Kakao Bank and Viva Republica consortium’s Toss Bank have been operating Internet-only banks since April 2017, July 2017 and October 2021, respectively. Internet-only banks have certain advantages over traditional banks as the former can pass savings in labor and overhead costs to their customers by offering higher interest rates on deposit accounts, lower loan costs and reduced service fees. Accordingly, commercial banks are facing increasing pressure to upgrade their service platforms to attract and maintain online users, which represents a growing customer base compared to traditional customers who have primarily conducted banking in-person at physical banking branches.

Since 2019, commercial banks including Shinhan Bank and other local banks and fintech companies have been offering open banking service. Open banking service allows each fintech company and bank to provide

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**banking services, such as checking balances and making withdrawals and transfers, with regards to customers’ accounts at other banks. Using open banking service, customers can easily access accounts, products and services across multiple banks, instead of being limited to the accounts, products and services available at the particular bank that they deal with. In addition, the MyData service was launched in 2020, allowing and requiring (upon the customer’s request and subject to compliance requirements) financial institutions that have been approved by the Financial Service Commission as a MyData service provider access and sharing of customers’ personal information, credit information and transaction data. Shinhan Card and Shinhan Bank have each obtained a license from the Financial Services Commission as a MyData service provider. Shinhan Card launched its MyData business in December 2021, followed by Shinhan Bank in January 2023. As of December 31, 2024, the Financial Services Commission has granted licenses to 66 companies to operate as MyData service providers, 23 of which are fintech or IT firms, and 65 companies are currently providing MyData services. This has resulted in competition between traditional financial institutions like us and fintech firms intensifying, particularly with respect to asset management services. If additional fintech companies operate as MyData service providers, we