JB Financial Group said Wednesday it posted a record net profit of 710.4 billion won ($520 million) in 2025, beating its own annual guidance and marking the highest earnings in the group’s history.
The figure represents a 4.9 percent increase from a year earlier, reflecting resilient profitability despite weak domestic growth, tighter household debt regulations and heightened global trade uncertainty.
Key profitability indicators remained solid. Return on equity stood at 12.4 percent, marking the seventh consecutive year of double-digit ROE, while return on assets reached 1.04 percent, extending the group’s streak of posting ROA above 1 percent for a second straight year.
JB Financial attributed the performance to its focus on capital efficiency through risk-adjusted returns on risk-weighted assets. While won-denominated loan assets grew 7.7 percent from end-2024, risk-weighted assets increased at a slower pace of 3.9 percent, reflecting tighter asset quality management.
As a result, the group’s preliminary Common Equity Tier 1 ratio improved by 0.37 percentage point from a year earlier to 12.58 percent, maintaining a solid capital buffer.
The board approved a year-end cash dividend of 660 won per common share. Combined with interim dividends of 480 won already paid, the group’s dividend payout ratio stands at around 30 percent. Including completed share buybacks worth 1.06 trillion won out of the 1.2 trillion won authorized for 2025, JB Financial’s total shareholder return ratio for the year reached about 45 percent.
Group subsidiaries also delivered steady earnings. Jeonbuk Bank posted a net profit of 228.7 billion won, up 4.6 percent from a year earlier, while Gwangju Bank earned 272.6 billion won. JB Woori Capital saw profit jump 25.8 percent to 281.5 billion won.
Asset management and investment units also remained profitable, with JB Asset Management posting 2 billion won in net profit and JB Investment logging 8.3 billion won. Overseas, Cambodia-based PPCBank reported a 27 percent increase in profit to 48.6 billion won.
Chairman Kim Ki-hong said the group will continue to review new businesses and growth initiatives based on performance and profitability, while sharpening its mid- to long-term growth strategy.
jwc@heraldcorp.com
