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

Company: SHINHAN FINANCIAL GROUP CO LTD
Filing Date: 2025-04-23
Form: 20-F
Chunk 23
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 a number of factors, including our financial strength as well as**

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**conditions affecting the financial services industry and the Korean economy in general. There can be no assurance that the rating agencies will maintain our current ratings or outlooks. There is no assurance that Shinhan Bank, Shinhan Card, any of our other major subsidiaries or our holding company will not experience a downgrade in their respective credit ratings and outlooks for reasons related to the general Korean economy or reasons specific to such entity. Any downgrades in the credit ratings and outlooks of us and our subsidiaries will likely increase our cost of funding, limit our access to capital markets and other borrowings, or require us to provide additional credit enhancement in financial transactions, any of which could adversely affect our liquidity, net interest margins and profitability, and in turn, our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our business may be materially and adversely affected by legal claims and regulatory actions against us, including with respect to financial products sold by us or our subsidiaries.

In the ordinary course of our business, we are subject to risk of legal claims and regulatory actions. We are also subject to a variety of other lawsuits, claims, disputes, legal proceedings and government investigations in Korea and other jurisdictions where we are active, including with respect to financial products sold by us or our subsidiaries. For example, in the past there have been incidents of alleged improper sales of financial products, such as those involving Lime Asset Management Co., Ltd. products, Discovery Asset Management Co., Ltd. products and certain German Heritage derivative-linked securities. Although we have taken measures and strive to improve our risk management systems and internal controls to prevent similar incidents, including updating the internal controls and performance evaluation systems for Shinhan Bank and Shinhan Securities, no assurance can be given that similar incidents have not occurred or will not occur in the future or that such incidents will always be detected, deterred or prevented. We may be required to compensate purchasers of such financial products sold by us or suffer losses and record provisions for credit loss allowance for expected losses in connection with such financial products, and we may also suffer harm to our and our subsidiaries’ reputation, any of which may increase our operational and compliance costs and subject us to greater scrutiny by regulators and other parties. These types of claims, disputes, proceedings or investigations may expose us to substantial monetary and/or reputational damages, legal defense costs, injunctive relief, criminal and civil penalties and the potential for regulatory restrictions on our businesses or sanctions against our management and employees